The Resurrection of Pietro Maximoff
by abstract0118
Summary: Pietro/OC fanfiction with the Avengers. I was just a doctor. And an ex-S.H.I.E.L.D agent. With superpowers. And a past that didn't make sense. And a life that wasn't really making sense either. Becoming an Avenger was a scary decision that I might regret...but maybe I will fit in here? Maybe even find a guy? Set after AOU. Part of 'The Return of Pietro Maximoff' series.
1. Resurrection

**NEW STORY :) This is a romance about Pietro and another agent at the Avengers tower. This will turn into a POV of that agent, but for the moment it is starting out as a POV from Clint. This chapter seems like such teenage girl writing, but it shouldn't be like this for the whole story. Slow build I think...**

 **Do you like the image by the way? I feel like it is a metaphor for him surviving as death is just passing him by...like the bullet...**

 **Clint POV**

I felt a cold rush of wind blow past me as I cradled the small boy in my arms, preparing for the bullets to hit me and save the child. I felt nothing but a small pain in my shoulder from where a single bullet had hit. It wouldn't affect me, but I was curious as to why only one bullet had hit and not the twenty that I should have received. Confused, I slowly opened my eyes to see what had happened. _What's going on?_ I slowly lifted up my head and noticed Pietro on my right, his body covered in dark red circles of blood that were spreading across his suit. He had taken the bullets for me.

"You didn't see that coming…" he managed to say before falling to the floor. Under different circumstances I would've rolled my eyes at the catchphrase that we had adapted together, but this was an overwhelming feeling of hurt. I felt a shot of guilt pour through my chest at the thought of it being my fault. He just saved my life. All the fighting and we have never lost one of our own. Never. All of the Avengers had remained alive, but now I realised how vulnerable we were. Pietro was part of the team, like Wanda and Vision. It seriously hurt me to see him like this.

I heard a girl loudly scream from somewhere and I snapped my head round in the direction it came from. I could see through the buildings Wanda falling to her knees and a blast of red energy burst out from her body, killing the surrounding robots. I could have saved him. I thought. I quickly and carefully put the small boy down between the car that Pietro had used to cover us with and went to check on the body beside me. I winced slightly as I checked his pulse, my arm aching from a bullet hitting me.

Nothing. His pulse was gone. Hearing Steve come towards me, I shut my eyes and sighed. I looked up at Steve and he turned his head to the side, knowing that Pietro was dead. I stepped back and looked down at the dead Avenger.

"We need to get him back to the ship. We have no idea when this rock is going to drop." Steve said, sounding defeated. He must have guilt too. He was the team leader after all. I watched him pick up Pietro, almost not being able to look at him as I noticed Natasha running over.

Thor reached his arms forward to take the child out of my arms, but I pushed passed him, ignoring Natasha as she called my name. I couldn't talk to her...at least not now. She had lied to me about Banner and I wasn't ready to deal with that. I picked up the fragile boy who couldn't stop staring at Pietro, Cap carrying his lifeless body in front of us. "Where's my mummy?" the little boy asked.

"I'm taking you to her. Don't worry." I reassured him and he looked up at me.

"Are you the Hawk guy?" he asked me, his voice shaking, and I smiled slightly.

"Yeah, I'm the Hawk guy." I replied, trying to keep myself from breaking down. The child seemed so innocent and sweet that I didn't want to let him go. Natasha and everyone else would've shouted at me for kidnapping a child, but I wanted something good in the world.

"Aren't the Avengers meant to save everyone?" he asked and I nodded.

"We try our best." I replied and thought about the words in my head. We always tried out best, but this time, the best wasn't good enough. I had to think of a way to repay Wanda and clear the debt from my shoulders. Pietro dying must've killed her and I felt somehow protective over the female Sokovian.

"Then why couldn't you save him?" he asked, talking about Pietro.

I breathed out deeply, walking onto one of the ships. "Some things you just can't see coming kid..." I wanted a child, at some point in the future, but never saw myself ever being with anyone that wasn't the red headed, ex-assassin that I avenged with. It had never gone further than friendship with Natasha, but I always had the feeling that there was something underneath the surface of our relationship. However, I ignored it and continued to do so as I knew she didn't feel the same as I did. I didn't mind, but found not dating anyone difficult sometimes.

"Costel!" the boy's mother shouted and I ran over, giving the boy to her mother. She cradled him tightly, in the same desperate way that I had seen many other mothers embrace their children. Previous battles with the Avengers had me saving the lives of many children.

Steve came over and some people gasped at the lifeless Avenger he was holding. He carefully gave him to me and I took him over to a section of empty seating. I laid him on the floor and stood back up, only to realise that I was bleeding. Wow, that is painful. I sat down and a member of medical staff came over to me.

"No, no. I'm fine." I said, waving them off. They had other people to attend to right now "It's been a long day." I lied down against some set of seats that were covered in rubble and stared down at Pietro. I sat there in silence, watching him. Quicksilver. This time he just wasn't quick enough. "I'm sorry." I whispered, because even though he wasn't quick enough, I could have still done more to protect that boy. I should have found him earlier in the battle. That way...he never would have died. "I should've done better." I whispered, shutting my eyes. I should've done better.

 **Wanda POV**

"I should've done better." I said, placing my hand over his dead heart. He was dead. My brother...dead. I hadn't stopped crying over it... For the first minutes of being back on the helicarrier, my powers were uncontrollable, red spurts of energy flicking from my fingers and causing ornaments and furniture to fly around or burst or break. I had never felt so fragile and weak.

"Wanda, there was nothing you could do." Clint assured me, placing a hand on my shoulder. I didn't feel any comfort from it though. I had been an hour since his death. It had been an hour since my brother died. He was everything to me. How am I meant to live without him? "I promise you that it will get better." he said, almost like he had my power. The only thing that came out of the battle of Sokovia was a friendship with Clint. He had looked after me once he had been stitched up from the wound he had.

"How do you know that? I asked, my eyes brimming with tears, but before the conversation could continue someone came through the door.

"Excuse me for interrupting, but I need to do an assessment on him." an agent said. She had light brown hair, blue eyes and a clipboard under her arm. She stood tall, like Agent Hill, and certainly didn't look like a medical professional going by the combat suit that she was wearing.

"Who are you?" I asked, defensively. Putting my arm over Pietro slightly. She wasn't going near him.

"Wanda, calm down. This is Agent Riley Moore. I recognise her from S.H.I.E.L.D." Clint said and, after a moment's hesitation, I nodded my head, giving my permission. Ever since I decided to become an Avenger, I trusted him. It wasn't his fault my brother was dead either. Steve already went over with me what happened. Clint was going to give himself up, but my brother was too caring. He's always been that way. Especially about me. In Sokovia, he would always look over me and keep me out of trouble.

"I just want to do an examination." she explained and shut the door. "May I?" she said, asking permission about whether she could look at his wounds or not. At least she had the decency to ask. I nodded and she walked towards my brother. She seemed nice.

"How are things on the ground?" Clint asked and she shook her head.

"Not good. There have already been riots about the Avengers causing too much trouble. I've been trying to keep it under control, but there is only so much we can do you know." They must have known each other from S.H.I.E.L.D missions or something.

"Yeah." Clint replied and they continued with their conversation. I just focused on Pietro. As she spoke, she took off his shirt to examined his wounds and I turned around to not look at my broken brother. Clint came to join me, facing away from my brother, and put a hand on my shoulder comfortingly.

"Um...guys?" she asked, unsure about something. _What is it?_ I thought.

"Yeah…" Clint replied.

"Your brother got hit with a series of bullets that went straight through his skin right?" she asked and we nodded. Bullets from the impact that that…thing...was firing at meant that the bullets went straight through. Taking out his heart...it was almost like closure for me. "I think you need to come and see this." she said and we turned around. "Look at his wounds." she said, pointing to dark marks on his chests as we walked over. "He seems to have healed himself."

"Because of his powers, he always healed quicker. I don't see your point." I said, confused.

"Hang on, what powers? This doesn't look like a guy who has been dead for an hour. He looks like he didn't even-" Suddenly, I felt a rush of painful energy surge through me and it caused me to drop to my knees, gasping for air like I had been deprived of it my whole life. I found myself unable to scream as I tightly gripped the railing of Pietro's bed. "What is it, Wanda?" Clint asked, quickly coming round to my side. My head hurt for a couple of seconds more before going back to normal, my heart calming in my chest. I heard a gasp of air from the left hand side of me and I turned to see Pietro's chest pushed forward before it fell back on the bed.

Quickly, I got up with the aid of Clint and leaned on the side of the bed. "Doctor...what happened?" I asked, urgently, breathless from what had just happened. I looked up. _Where did she go?_ I need her to tell me what's going on and she can't have disappeared just because of that. "Doctor?"

I saw a hand emerge from the other side of the bed and a voice say "I'm fine. Just got hit in the chest by an Avenger and not in a nice way." she said, jumping up. "I know it might sound crazy, but I checked his pulse and-"

"He's alive." I smiled and looked at Clint who had a mixture of shock and happiness on his face. "I can feel it in my mind. We've always had a good connection." I explained and went to check the pulse on his neck for reassurance. "Thank God." Everything can go back to normal now. Everything will be fine. _You scared me more than anything Brother..._ I sent a message to his mind, unsure about whether he would even get it or not. Usually my messages did get to him, but who knew what laws of physics were being played with. My brother was back from the dead after all.

"Are you serious?" Clint asked and checked his pulse too. "That's insane. I need to go and inform Fury." he said, excitedly, and ran off to inform the spy. _Oh my God...he's actually alive. I can't believe this. I thought he was dead and I would be alone, but I have him back._ I hugged him quickly, his body feeling warmer than before, and placed a kiss on his head.

"Are you okay?" I asked the doctor, forgetting that she had been hit by my brother.

"Nothing that a bar of chocolate won't fix." she smiled and picked up her clipboard that she had dropped on the floor. "Does your brother usually come back from the dead?" she asked and I smiled, gleefully.

"Never happened before and hopefully he will never go dying on me again too." I said, grateful to feel the sound of his heart beat when I focused it in my mind.

"Believe me. I never thought that this were even possible. You mentioned abilities by the way. What abilities does he have?" Riley asked, curiously, as she got some equipment together, including a heart monitor.

"Oh I'm sure you will find out." I replied smiling. The news were probably already broadcasting it right now. "How come you are so calm about this? His abilities, I mean." I asked and she looked hesitant before answering.

"There um...there's been a lot of talk on the news about the Avengers and Gods and after the chitauri, aliens and power people kind of became normal. Some people just have amazing gifts." she smiled. The woman mystified me, seeming loveable and brave, but I was never sure about who to trust. That was what Pietro had said. _Don't trust anyone that I don't say is trustworthy first._ But the thing was, I liked the woman already.

I noticed Pietro turning in his sleep slightly before I looked at the woman again. "Who do you work for now then? Clint said that you used to work for S.H.I.E.L.D, but they've shut down so…"

"Well, there's an Avengers side team that have been working on a new base since the old one was taken over. I should get the privilege to train there if everything goes to plan." she smiled and then went back to attending to my brother. "You are very fortunate to have a brother."

"Lonely child?" I asked her and she nodded, attaching wires to Pietro. I knew it was for his own good, but seeing his body being penetrated with needles didn't make me very comfortable.

"I always wanted someone who I could have as a constant best friend that knew everything. I don't really have that relationship with anyone else." That was what Pietro was to me. He knew everything about my life. He trusted me with everything. And I trusted him.

"No friends or romances?"

"No time. The closest thing I have to a friend is my phone and romantic relationships haven't exactly been great for me."

"Why not?" I asked.

"Being a member of S.H.I.E.L.D means that I don't have time for that kind of commitment." she said, but I could tell that she was lying about something. I was about to question her further, but Fury came through the door with the rest of the Avengers.

 **Riley POV**

I wondered about who this mystery man was and how the hell he came back to life, but I'm used to mysteries and I'm used to solving them too, so it wouldn't be too hard. This guy seemed like one hell of a mystery. He died and then came back to life. How does that even happen? Maybe his cells regenerated fast enough to allow him to return to living state? The Avengers knew his power, but I wasn't informed. I've spent the last week battling HYDRA agents and keeping out rioters from the Avengers tower. There have been many complaints about what happened in Sokovia. The girl, Wanda, won't tell me about him, but I'll find out soon. I looked at the hospital bed guy. From the information I gathered, I could tell that he worked out. Obviously, I only started thinking about this after he was alive again and not before because that would have been creepy. _Like it isn't creepy now Riley!_ What I told Wanda was correct - I don't have time for romance - but I can acknowledge when other people look attractive.

"Being a member of S.H.I.E.L.D meant that I didn't have time for that kind of commitment." I told her. Fury said that I can't be in a relationship with anyone, because they will find out about me. He said it was to protect me, but obviously I wouldn't tell her any of that.

"Right, what in Asgard is going on?" I heard a voice call from the doorway. I tried to keep my nerves and heart rate down as I stared at the billionaire that was casually leaning against the door frame. Tony Stark? _I am not a fangirl, but...is this actually happening?_ I could deal with fit patients with powers, information that they don't elaborate on much to my annoyance, and then give Tony Stark to me. Some other Avengers walked in. Y _ou can't be serious…_ "Who's this dude?" he asked.

"Tony! Manners!" someone warned and Stark apologised.

"Sorry…" he said, clearing his throat. "Who's this dudette?"

Natasha rolled her eyes and stepped forward. I recognised the suit that seemed to be too slim and the iconic red hair that was sprouting from her head. I did notice her cheeks looking slightly puffy, but didn't notify her on the subject. She probably wouldn't have liked me asking her if she was okay as it was evident she had been crying. "Nice to meet you officially, Agent Moore." she said, extending her hand to greet me.

"Likewise, Agent Romanoff." I said, shaking her hand. _Wow, firm hand grip._

"This is Steve, James, Sam, Vision and Tony." she said, letting go of my hand and gesturing to the others behind her. One of them, that I recognised as Captain America, was wearing the suit that he fought in. It was covered in his own blood and his uniform was torn. Two of the men were muscular and tall, one wearing a battle suit and one wearing casual clothes. The person who completely drew my attention was a red skinned person...was he some sort of android? I had never seen anything like it. He seemed so human, but artificial all the same. I wonder whether he sounded that way. I guessed that the abstract being had the abstract name of Vision.

"Okay, is anybody going to tell me what is going on?" Tony huffed, his rude tone irritating the hell out of me. People tell you never to meet your heroes and I was now thinking that advice was spot on.

I spun round to him, the anger building up in my body. I had no sleep before arriving at the helicarrier and had been attending to patients all day. I didn't have time for his bullshit. "My name is Agent Riley Moore. I'm not a dudette, I'm a field agent and occasionally a medical agent. 'What's going on' is that this guy has just come back from the dead and I have no idea what his flipping power is, so I can't make a conclusion." I said, explaining my problems as I gestured to the body on the medical bed. Everyone look at me, shocked from my outburst, and I froze suddenly feeling rude. I gasped, worried that I had over stepped the line, but before I could apologise to them, someone spoke up.

"That's impossible." Vision said as they came towards us. So his voice is artificial.

"It is true. He has a pulse." I informed him, the apology slipping to the back of my mind as I focused on what they wanted to know.

"I believe it is because of his abilities." Clint added.

"Would someone please tell me what his abilities are?" I asked impatiently, throwing my hands in the air irritably.

"He has increased speed." Steve informed me. _Finally!_

"Thank you." I said, relieved, raising my eyebrows. I wasn't shocked by the fact that he had abilities, but super speed? _That is damn cool._ "Because of those abilities, I agree with Clint's hypothesis. I believe that because he has an increased rate of speed, his body has a faster healing rate. That is why he returned."

Wanda nodded, agreeing with me. "He's always healed faster."

"Seems plausible. Well, coming back from the dead is something very impressive to put on your resume." Sam said, smirking, which made me create an opinion on who he was in an instant. The funny guy.

"I guess it would make him stand out from other candidates." Clint added, smirking. The bag of popcorn that he was holding made my stomach rumble slightly. I hadn't eaten for quite a while, getting food before my shift this morning.

"Back to the point, he's alive. So we check his medical health and then train him like we planned originally before he was shot. Agreed?" Steve asked and they all nodded. I felt odd as I stood there, listening to the information being thrown around that must've been confidential, but I focused my gaze on Pietro and tried not to listen to their conversation, finding it very difficult.

"We'll just have to wait for him to wake up." Wanda said, stroking Pietro's head.

"Don't think you'll have to wait that long. I think he's waking up right now." Rhodes said, gesturing to the Sokovian on the bed.

"Pietro!" Wanda said on the opposite side of the bed to me, leaping at the idea of him being awake. She stroked his cheek with the back of her hand and retracted it slowly when his eyes fluttered open. The man had a nice face, his blue eyes the centre of attention for him, but I did notice his silver like hair that looked slightly unusual. It suited him somehow. His head was turned in my direction as his eyes opened fully. He furrowed his eyebrows at me and I wondered what he was curious about. _Maybe it's about the fact that he just fucking woke up from the dead?_ One side of his mouth lifted into a cute smile that made me suddenly feel nervous about being there. I could see Wanda out of the corner of my eye looking at me with curiosity.

"Pietro?" Wanda asked. His eyes were still locked with mine, almost like he was waiting for me to respond, so I didn't resist and gave him a small smile back, one that was probably unnoticeable to everyone else as their attention was focused on the man who had returned.

Once I did, he turned his head and said "Wanda?". His voice sounded raspy from sleep and I could see his eyes scan her face as she came closer to him.

She reached down and hugged him tightly. "God, I missed you." she said, her voice slightly muffled by the shoulder her face was buried into.

"Missed you too." he managed to reply, but I could see that he was wincing slightly from his injury. Even though I didn't know them very well, I was glad that they were reunited. S.H.I.E.L.D agents are rumoured to be emotionless, but not me. Definitely not me. I smiled at the site of them reuniting. They only had each other, like Wanda said, and I could really see that now.

"Errr...Pietro?" Steve asked and Pietro turned his head to the Captain, slowly easing out of Wanda's hug. "Do you understand what happened to you?"

I could see him freeze slightly, but he relaxed after a second. "We get killed we walk it off, right?" he joked with his thick Sokovian accent. I didn't know what the joke meant, but it made the other team mates laugh. I stood there a bit awkwardly, not getting the joke at all. Luckily, no one seemed to notice. I could tell that he was hiding behind humour instead of taking the situation seriously.

Steve smiled and nodded. "Don't start walking just yet though. We need to make sure that you are back in shape first."

"How are you feeling, Mr Maximoff?" I asked, following on from the Captain's topic.

"Pietro. And who are you?" he asked, his eyes roaming me suspiciously.

"I'm Riley Moore. I was assigned by Director Fury to examine your body after your death...which obviously isn't the case anymore. So I..um...am guessing that I will now be your nurse, an occupation that I am fully qualified for I assure you." I said, wanting to face-palm myself for rambling to him. I heard Stark mutter something about me being ruder to him than I was with Pietro.

"Switching from a medical examiner into a doctor? Quite a career change." he said, a smile, that I could've sworn was flirtatious, sweeping over his face.

"Well I like to keep things fresh." I joked and he laughed, but started to cough after a moment. "I'm sorry. I s-shouldn't have done that." I said, putting my hand on his back to lift him up, so that he could breath a bit better. His skin felt nice to touch, warm against my cold hands, but after a second I registered that this had probably been the closest I had been to a shirtless man in a long time. I began to feel anxious about touching him and lowered him down as soon as he stopped coughing.

"Don't worry about it." he said, as Wanda passed him some water. I adjusted his bed from a flat position to having it half way, so that I could examine him and he could still see everyone.

"I will have to finish attaching the wires to you to examine your vital signs. I hope this is alright?" I asked and he nodded, sipping his drink. I forced my eyes to focus on his face and not his toned stomach as he laid against the chair. I didn't care about boy's bodies at all, but it was distracting me. I was trying to do my job and it irritated me that I could lose concentration so easily.

"Do what you have to do." he responded as he passed his glass back to Wanda.

"Is your head feeling okay now?" Wanda asked as I began to attach the tubes. After a second, I looked up and realised that she was talking to me, not Pietro. I found myself smiling at her caring nature.

"A little sore, but I'll survive." I smiled, trying to forget about the embarrassing incident. I hoped that no one would bring it up as I knew I could get flustered when talking about embarrassing moments.

"What happened to you?" The man I think was called...James asked. He was an older looking one and I remember seeing him with Stark at a meeting about the Iron Man suit or something along those lines.

"I erm…" I began, looking at Pietro and then back to Rhodey.

"Quick kid here hit Riles with his chest." Clint said, chucking a piece of popcorn up in the air and catching it in his mouth. I cringed at the nickname Clint gave me. I never liked nicknames. Clint always had the ability to bestow annoying nicknames for everyone. "It was quite amusing..."

"I did what now?" he asked, eyes wide staring at me in what looked like fear. I could see the smallest amount of pink rise on his face. His abilities probably allowed his blood to circulate quicker so he didn't go as red as anybody else. I wish I had those abilities.

"Do not call me Riles." I said, glaring at Clint as I felt my cheeks flare up. I fiddled with my hands as I thought of what to do to help Pietro and forget about the topic they were talking about.

"I'm really sorry." Pietro said, turning his head to me.

"Don't worry about it." I said and smiled awkwardly at him.

"How come I hit your head with my chest?" he asked. _Good question I guess._ It's not exactly common to be hit in the face by someone's chest...

"I was examining your wounds. I had to get quite close to your chest to do so." I said and he raised an eyebrow, which flustered me even further. "Sorry, I phrased that wrong! I'm always doing that. I just meant t-that I mean I was examining your wounds just examining them. I was curious as to why you healed so um...so fast and that's why I was so close. I would never be that close to your chest unless it was required m-medically or unless you asked me to...which you wouldn't in the first place." I took a breath, trying to calm down my red face. "I'm just gonna shut up now." I tapped my clipboard nervously with my pen. "Yep." I said, grasping the pen tightly and making some notes on his abilities to distract myself. I could've sworn that I heard a chuckle come from Pietro, but I _definitely_ heard it from the other Avengers in the room.

There was silence for a moment as he turned his head to look at me, his eyes examining my face in the same way I examined his wounds. I caught his eyes for a second before turning my attention to my clipboard again, not wanting to see him staring at me. I didn't want to look up at him. Since he had woken up, I felt pressure to make sure that his condition didn't get any worse and I was worried that he wouldn't have approved of me helping his condition. If we hadn't taken out the bullets, then maybe Pietro would've stayed dead. If he had wanted to die, then perhaps he would have disliked me for helping him. Thoughts flooded through my head at the idea of Pietro hating me for trying to help.

I shook them off as he spoke up again. "Does this mean that I'm immortal by the way?" he asked the others, seeming quite happy about the idea.

"Getting shot, yes. Being decapitated...probably not." Tony said, skillfully throwing a piece of food into his mouth.

"Are you going to be okay here for about an hour? We need to finish speaking with Fury about what happened in Sokovia." Clint said.

"Good food," Pietro said, grabbing Clint's popcorn bag, because he was right next to him. Clint groaned, but didn't bother taking the popcorn back. "a babbling nurse." Pietro said, winking at me as he ate a piece of popcorn. My head rose up at the mention of my name and I felt my face get hotter, if that were even possible. "I think I'm gonna be fine resting here for another hour."

"I'll speak to you later okay?" Wanda said and kissed his head delicately, resting there for 5 seconds before she reluctantly pulled away.

"Goodbye sister." he smiled and she returned the sweet smile. She walked out with the others, glancing at me briefly before she left, and I continued to do my job. They must have some connection. I rubbed my forehead as a faint pain shot through my head and I thought about when Pietro hit me in the face. _Since when did my job become so hazardous?_ "So how are you really then?" I asked, trying to forget about the pain Pietro had caused to my forehead..

"Aren't you supposed to tell me that, being a nurse and all?" he replied and I glared at his smugness.

"I didn't mean physically. You're fine in that field." I said and I almost felt like face planting as he smirked at my stupidity. "I'm just gonna...get on with.…" I said, pushing a strand of hair behind my ear as my cheeks burned.

"You're cute." he smiled and I kept my mouth straight. I am meant to be a professional after all. "Not even a little smile for the compliment?" he asked and I shook my head, determined that I wasn't going to give him a smile.

"Not today…" I said and turned around to pretend to do something as I smiled. I was determined not to let him win. He was very charming. I didn't usually like guys as soon as I met them, but Pietro seemed a bit different. Maybe it was his accent? Of course I didn't like him as more than a friend. We were hardly that anyway. He'd just come back from the dead for Christ sakes! He seemed nice and I could imagine him being a good friend to have here. I gasped, still smiling, as I was quickly turned around to face Pietro again. His hands were round my wrists and he was smiling at me.

"See, I knew you could do it." he said, but his voice was strained.

"Are you in pain?" I asked, changing the subject and looking at the monitor. Everything seemed to be fine except his heart rate was a little higher. He seemed to groan at the subject change and I wondered why he didn't want to talk about it. He seemed to be joking just fine. "You shouldn't harm yourself just to see me smile you know." I said and he chuckled.

"I'd put myself through anything to see your smile." he said and I shook my head.

"I bet that's what you use on all the girls." I replied as I pressed a few of the monitor's tabs.

He shrugged. "Most of them." he said and I couldn't tell whether he was joking or not. He seemed to be telling the truth. He seemed very flirtatious, so I could imagine him being a bit of a ladies man. I decided to change the subject as I got the impression that he was flippant between girls. _Not a guy for me then..._ I thought. _He was doing so well too. Damn._

"So how did it feel? Dyi-" I asked him, looking over his vitals and wanting to change the subjects from dating, but he interrupted me.

"So what do you do for a living then?" he asked, trying to change the subject, and I turned to look at him suspiciously.

"Pietro..." I whispered softly and his small grin faded, replaced with a grim look of annoyance. "You've only just been brought back to life. Take a minute." I advised him. He narrowed his eyes at me, in a considering fashion, before shifting himself to sit higher on the bed and breathing out.

"Painful. It was painful. Being shot by bullets isn't exactly the best way to go out."

"Did you know what was happening to you?" His eyes made their way to the floor and I got the strong impression that he didn't want to talk about it. "I'm...really sorry. I should've thought about-"

"No, it's fine." he said, shifting in his bed slightly. I could tell he was uncomfortable and didn't want to talk about the issue, even though he admitted otherwise.

"I didn't think about it. Sorry." I apologised again and quickly decided to move on again. "So, you grew up in Sokovia?" I asked and he nodded, the brightness returning to his eyes after our short, but deep, discussion about his death. That discussion would be waiting for him at some point down the line, if not by me, then by someone else, most likely his sister..

"Yeah, it wasn't special, but it was home." he said, smiling and remembering his country.

"Did you spend your whole life there?" I asked, attaching the clipboard to the side of the bed.

"Yes, me and Wanda haven't needed to go anywhere else. I guess it was mainly because our parents were killed there." he said, anger in his voice more than pain. "We've always had an attachment to it."

I cringed slightly. "I'm sorry. I bring up the most inappropriate subjects don't I…"

"Don't worry about it." he said, waving his hand for me to dismiss my fretting, but I had the feeling that talking about it hurt him more than he let off. "Anyway, we had friends there and the rest of the world didn't really know us, so it was a good hiding place for us. When we volunteered for the enhancement program, me and Wanda didn't even think about not taking it. We were bored in Sokovia, but we didn't want to go anywhere else. It was a good option for us and we thought we were going to help the world. At least, that's what they told us." he explained, remorse clear in his tone. "The process of becoming an enhanced was hell." I could see the memories flash behind his eyes as he spoke and they seemed to zone in and out of the present. "I can't remember whether it was more painful than dying or not. I don't regret it though. It brought me here. To the Avengers." he said. He made me think about chances. Chances of meeting someone. Like if Rogers wasn't as determined as he was to be in the army, he wouldn't have been Captain America and HYDRA would have killed thousands of people.

"Well, it's good that you are comfortable with them, seeing as you will be working with them." I said and went over to wash my hands at a nearby basin. "I'm afraid I'll have to make you uncomfortable though. I need to press where your wounds were to make sure there is no harm to them. Is that okay?" I asked, wiping my hands dry with a tissue, and he nodded. I threw the paper towel in the bin and went back over to his side, tentatively reaching my hands above his arm.

"Tell me when it hurts" I said and began to press lightly against his arm. The wounds were slightly open, but much better than before, almost completely healed in fact. They would scar for definite. "The report said that the bullets were removed so you shouldn't be in that much pain." I tried not to focus on his muscles, but I hadn't been so close to anyone in ages. I forced myself not to smile, remembering that it was very inappropriate. I shook my head, trying to get rid of my thoughts, and he looked at me confused. _Ladies man, remember._

"Are...you okay?" he asked wearily. He was probably worried that I was going to faint or something.

"Yeah, I'm good." I replied and continued to move up his arm to his shoulder, hoping he didn't notice me checking him out. He hissed as I pressed against the large one on his chest. "Sorry." I said and moved down to the top of his abs, noting that the one I had just pressed was a little redder than the others.

I was slightly nervous about doing this. Sure, I had done this before with patients, but never with their top off. "I'm sorry. Should I get you a t-shirt?" I asked and he shrugged. I'm not exactly happy with doing this with someone, especially when I've only just met them.

"If you want." he said and I nodded, going over to the side of the room to get one out of our spare clothes box. I took off his monitoring wires and handed him the top. He was about to pull it on, but I warned him. "Be careful! You don't want anymore pain."

He nodded and carefully slipped on the shirt, taking in a few sharp breaths. "Hopefully you will be back to normal in an hour or so." I smiled and noted down the time with his condition state. He was improving an inhuman rates, but I didn't mention it.

"The quicker I get back to saving everyone, the better." he said and I laughed at his enthusiasm.

"You can only save the world when you are recovered." I instructed, pressing down against his stomach with my hands again to check over the bullets. "So no more speeding until you are fully healed."

"Not even for smiles?" he asked, grinning at me.

"Nope, not even for smiles." I said and tapped him on the shoulder when I was done. "I can tell you are not one for listening to orders, but do me a favour and don't rip your wounds open again or I'm afraid your sister might kill me." I told him, making him smirk and chuckle to himself. "You should be fine."

"Hey, what happened to Sokovia in the end? I forgot to ask." he said and I slowly removed my hand from him, coming to the realisation that no one had told him about his home. "Riley…what happened? What aren't you telling me?" I recognised that he used my first name and decided that I needed to put a barrier between us. I knew it was wrong to as we were talking about a delicate subject, but I was too close to him already, his figure making my heart speed up more than usual. Fraternisation was forbidden and I couldn't bring myself to even consider breaking it.

"Mr. Maximoff," I began, remembering to use his last name rather than his first. "I'm afraid Sokovia didn't survive as well as you did." I said, deciding to look at the floor instead of meeting his gaze. He had just gone on about it being his home town, where he grew up and somewhere that he never wanted to leave. It had been destroyed. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. "Iron Man and Thor had to destroy it to ensure that no one else was harmed by the robots."

"It's fine." he said, gesturing for me to not bother about it, though I could see perfectly in his eyes that he was clearly not fine.

"There were casualties. I can get the list we have if you wan-"

"It's fine." he said again, looking down at the floor. He cleared his throat and asked "So how did you become an agent?"

 **I re-wrote this chapter to make it longer and to stop Laura from being involved with Clint as it contradicted the story I had planned of Natasha and Clint being together. Go to my author's page to check out my other stories - The Two Assassins, The Real Steve Rogers and The Avenger's Falcon. Enjoy and please review!**


	2. Powers

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 **Previously:**

 **"Mr. Maximoff," I began, remembering to use his last name rather than his first. "I'm afraid Sokovia didn't survive as well as you did." I said, deciding to look at the floor instead of meeting his gaze. He had just gone on about it being his home town, where he grew up and somewhere that he never wanted to leave. It had been destroyed. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. "Iron Man and Thor had to destroy it to ensure that no one else was harmed by the robots."**

 **"It's fine." he said, gesturing for me to not bother about it, though I could see perfectly in his eyes that he was clearly not fine.**

 **"There were casualties. I can get the list we have if you wan-"**

 **"It's fine." he said again, looking down at the floor. He cleared his throat and asked "So how did you become an agent?"**

"Trained in the army for a bit, Fury picked me out to join S.H.I.E.L.D." I lied. "After S.H.I.E.L.D was exposed as half HYDRA, he knew that he could trust me so he took me into a group of side agents. A mini secret force that he could trust. Some of the people on that secret force helped the citizens of Sokovia escape."

"So you were born a warrior, yes?" he asked.

"You could say so yeah. When I was growing up, my mother and father always loved the idea of me being an academic girl, but I was always into sports. I went into the army, all against my parents wishes, for about 4 and a half years until someone recommended me to Fury along with some others agents." I always kept my backstory the same and simple.

I continued to talk with him a bit and assess his vitals until Vision and Wanda entered the room half an hour later, the young girl laughing at something. She stopped when she reached the medical bed. "Are you feeling any better?"

"Much better thank you. Still a bit rough, but I can feel myself getting stronger." he said, smiling at Wanda.

"Good." she said and lovingly kissed his head. She looked at Vision and then back to Pietro. The boy frowned slightly at Vision, but then it dropped when Wanda saw him. _What is that all about?_ I felt a little left out on the exchange, but it wasn't like I should be involved. I am just his doctor after all. "There's a meeting in half an hour in the boardroom. Do you think he will be ready Riley?" she asked, my name sounding strange on her foreign tongue.

"He should be." I replied, registering the fact that she called me Riley.

"Great. See you then." she said, holding his hand, squeezing it and then leaving the room with Vision. He looked at them suspiciously as they left, but I wasn't going to question him.

After a while, we struck up a conversation about the attack. "Ultron was a complete and utter maniac, but he seemed so...human. He was exactly like Stark, because his personality was based on him. It was difficult to tell the difference sometimes." he joked. I liked the sound of his accent. I didn't think that I would find foreign accents attractive, but his sounded so soothing. I wanted to hear more about his story and who he was, not in a romantic way, but out of curiosity. "It felt strange when we switched to the Avengers side but I got used to it after a while. Have you worked with any of them before?" he asked. We had been talking for a while and I had completely lost track of time due the distraction lying on the bed. I had pretended to do fake check ups on my notes just to hear more of his story. _There's no problem with double checking, right?_

"I've seen Natasha and Clint once or twice. Clint actually lead one of my missions once, a while back, but I'm not best friends with them or anything. Friends aren't exactly my forte." I notice him frown whilst I checked my watch. "It's been half an hour. We should probably get going. Do you need any assistance?"

"No I'm fi-aahhhh…" he shouted, trying to sit up by himself. _Idiot._

"I'll take that as a yes then." I said and hurried round to his side. "You probably have some internal damage." He swung his legs round and I held his soft, warm hands as he climbed off of the bed. When he did, he jolted forward due to his injuries, his chest slightly knocking into me again.

"Sorry, it must get annoying me constantly doing that. Stupid reflexes." he cursed, laughing and, annoyingly, not blushing like I often did. If anybody else did that, especially the Captain, I would've expected them to blush, but Pietro's enhanced abilities must prevent that.

"No problem." I smiled, wondering whether hitting me with his chest would become a permanent issue. "Can you stand on your own?"

"I think so." he said, taking a few nervous steps forward. He was fine walking as his legs were practically unaffected. It was just his upper body that had the problem with movement as all of the bullets were mainly directed there. "I feel much better though. Thank you." he said as we made our way out of the door. _Yeah, you must feel better alive than dead._

"It's a pleasure and, to be honest, you and your abilities did most of the work." I said. Once we arrived at the door, I took him towards the boardroom. I noticed that the female agents looked him up and down as he walked through the corridor...strutting their hips a little more as they made eye contact with him and giggling after they passed.

"Why am I seeming so popular to stare at?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. He had a small limp as he walked and I prepared myself to catch him at any moment.

"Maybe it's because…" I stopped myself before any further embarrassment of calling him attractive. He was very attractive, but I was not going to say that to someone that I had only just met an hour beforehand and I was not meant to have relationships. I dis-acknowledged the physical attributes he had as I continued walking with him. "It's probably because you've just come back from the dead."

"Oh yeah." he said and scratched his head. "I'm still not sure about all that." he whispered to himself, but I always had big ears. I was going to drop it, but I was curious about what he had meant.

"All of what?" I asked him. He looked up, surprised that I heard, but relaxed after a moment.

"It's nothing." he said, waving me off.

"No, tell me. I'm your doctor. I have Doctor Patient confidentiality remember?" I joked and he laughed, drawing the attention of some more girls carrying files.

"No I..." he began, his happy face dropped slowly and he suddenly became serious. "I don't think I ca-"

"Mr. Maximoff, glad you could make it." Fury interrupted, waiting outside the door of the board room. Our heads turned the Director who was in his usual black uniform ( _does he own any other colour?_ ) and an uneasy look in his eye. Fury was one of those people that you never knew who to trust.

"Well, I shall see you later Mr. Maximoff. Sir." I said goodbye to them and was turning around before Fury called my name.

"Agent Moore?" he said and I slowly turned around to face him. _What does he want now?_

"Sir?" I asked and joined him again.

He looked at Pietro with a death glare. The speedster flashed a smile and turned to me. "Great to know when you are not wanted." he said and went inside the boardroom. I turned to Fury, deciding not to laugh at Pietro's joke on the outside. "Is there a problem, Sir?"

"No problem, just an opportunity." he said, clasping his hands together. _God, Fury is so dramatic sometimes._

"What opportunity?" I asked, knowing that my dull and boring tone would annoy him.

"I believe that we should inform the Avengers about your abilities." he said. _...I'm sorry...what?_

"Hang on, are you mad? I'm not saying that it is a dreadful idea, but that is a dreadful idea. Not only is that a really bad idea, but you are the one who told me not to tell anyone about my powers." I shouted in a whisper. _Has he gone crazy? Fury has been here for so long I think he has completely lost it._ "I'm dangerous. I can't control them properly." ' _because YOU haven't given me the training'_ I finished in my head.

"No one will know about your powers apart from them. They can be trusted with this. People on the outside who will see you use your power will not know who you are." he explained.

"How come?" I asked, but I already knew the answer. "A suit? I'm getting a suit."

"It's one of the benefits of the job." he said, trying to persuade me to his side. Much to my disappointment, I had always wanted a suit…

"Why me? Surely there are more qualified agents." I argued, but he came back with a response that I couldn't refuse, his motivational speech taking over my brain.

"Your powers, if controlled properly, could be a brilliant advantage to the team. Remember that they won't know that you exist. Future enemies will have no idea that you will be battling with the Avengers." he argued and I sighed, knowing that he would make me do it anyway. "You are one of the only power people that hasn't been discovered and that is because of S.H.I.E.L.D's protection remember." _I cannot stand being guilt tripped._

"Fine, i'll do it. But it doesn't mean I have to enj….wait no i think I will really enjoy it." I smiled and he shook his head, not looking overly amused. _What must he think of me?_ I thought as I dropped my smile slowly. Me and Fury weren't close, but we had grown more like friends rather than colleagues, though he was the untrustworthy friend that stood at the back of the room observing everything at parties. He opened the door and they were all sitting in there. I may have thought this was crazy, but it felt overwhelming when I walked into the room of Avengers.

The order of the table went Steve, Natasha, Clint, Pietro, Wanda, Vision, Sam, Rhodey, Tony and then a two spare seats. One was next to Tony, being a seat for me, and one was right at the top of the table for Fury.

"Leyley, glad you are joining us." Tony said and I scowled at him.

"One more nickname and I am killing everyone in this room." I threatened as I walked towards him.

"Like you would be able to do that." Stark said and they laughed...all but Fury. When people realised that he was silent, they got anxious.

"Is she here to kill us?" Sam asked and I sat down next to Stark, much to my discomfort. Some of the team members were looking at me confused, but I sat and waited for Fury to explain why I was there.

"This is Agent Riley Moore, if you didn't already know that. I believe you were introduced earlier" Fury said and I smiled shyly, feeling a bit small compared to everyone else. I noticed Clint and Pietro sitting together like they had been best friends forever. "She is a field agent, but also works as a doctor and medical examiner, which is why she was assigned to Mr. Maximoff after his 'death'. I want her to be part of your team."

Steve looked at me and smiled, hope on his face, but the hope in his eyes was less so. He didn't trust me yet, even though Fury did, which implied that they felt the same uncertainty about the boss as I did. "Okay, what's your strongest asset?" he asked and I looked at Fury for confirmation, a feeling of worry spreading through my stomach.

"Are you sure about this?" I asked and he gave me a death glare, telling me that I needed to.

"Just show them what you can do." he said, sounding tired of me, and I nodded, getting up and standing behind the chair I had sat in.

"Please, please don't freak out." I pleaded, anxious that they would think I was some kind of freak. I breathed out and whispered 'O _kay'_ before shutting my eyes and letting the power take control over my body. It spread from the centre of my chest outwards towards the tips of my fingers and the bottom of my toes. It was so overpowering, like taking in a large breath of air slowly so that all of your lungs are filled. I hoped that it had worked, because I really wanted to impress them.

"Woooaaahhh…." I heard James say and I opened my eyes, a smile starting on my face as I realised that it had.

"What the fuck just happened?" Pietro asked, near to standing up in his seat. I walked around a bit, relishing the feeling of my power and loving the hold it had over me.

"Language." Steve said and I laughed making them all turn their heads in my direction.

"What the hell!" Sam said, getting a bit freaked out. They were looking at me, but not directly.

"Well she is going to be my new toy." Tony said, smiling, and I walked over. I hit him in the side of the head and he shouted.

"OW! Don't do that!" he complained and I reappeared, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Well don't make me your toy." I said and went to sit back in my seat.

"Invisibility? That is the coolest power ever." Pietro said and I blushed.

"Thank you." I smiled and pulled the sleeves of my jumper over my hands, suddenly feeling a little nervous in a room with them all.

"Fury, how long have you known about this?" Steve asked, sounding a bit pissed off that he hadn't known about me.

"A while."

"And how long has that while been?"

"Ever since S.H.I.E.L.D rescued her about ten years ago." he said and I heard Pietro whisper "Rescued?"

Fury's head turned to him. "Something to say Maximoff?"

"No, no. It's nothing." he said and Fury continued, but my insides cringed. I could feel Pietro's eyes on me and I looked over at him. I felt guilty for lying to him about my upbringing, because he told me about his childhood too, which was probably a big thing for him to tell a stranger after just waking up. That must of hurt his trust in me a little. He looked down at the table and I felt like apologising immediately, but I obviously couldn't as I was in front of everyone. _How could I tell him that I was rescued when I had only just met him?_

"She will tell you about that later. With all that has been going on, we need all of the power people we can get that are trained up." Fury said.

"She's trained?" Wanda asked.

"Not completely. She needs help with sharpening her skills and we want to extend her powers if we can."

"You do?" I asked, surprised that Fury would even give me the chance to do this. _I was going to become an Avenger? I thought I was going to help out here and there, maybe do a few hours at the weekend!_

"Yes. We believe that your powers could be stretched more than they already are, making team members and objects invisible." _Wow! This is so cool._

"When is training going to start?" James asked. I felt a bit overpowered by it, but I had to look like I fitted in. I sat up in my chair, copying what the others were doing apart from Tony who was slouching down.

"For the new Avengers, that's Vision, Wanda, Pietro, James, Sam and Riley, it will be at 11 o'clock in the Avengers training room. Romanoff and Rogers will be taking the session. Original Avengers, you will not have any training until next week. Here are your files." he said, handing them out to us.

"Your names have been given to you as requested. Pietro will be known as Quicksilver in the field. We considered the name when you joined us as a suggestion and we thought it was appropriate."

"I wonder why…" Tony joked and we laughed. He picked up his file and leaned back in his chair, skimming over it, partially tuning into Fury.

"I like it." he smiled and nodded his head in approval of the name.

"Wanda is known as Scarlet Witch, Sam as the Falcon, Vision as himself and James as War Machine." he said and then turned to me. "We still need to assign you a name. Any ideas?"

"Invisible girl?" Tony asked and I sent him a death glare.

"I am not a girl." I growled and hesitated before deciding not to kick him. I didn't like this guy. He was rich and arrogant. I always thought that he was brilliant, a genius, but he was just dolled up by rumours.

"How about Invisible Woman?" Sam asked. At first I thought he was joking, but I couldn't think of anything better on the spot.

"I'll think about it…"

"Good. Now, I'm ordering all of you to go and get some rest. No later than 2200 hours tonight. The time is 1900 hours. You have three hours."

"Are you really telling us when to go to bed? What are you? Our babysitter?" Tony asked.

Fury glared at him. "Seeing as you can't take care of yourselves most of the time, I am appointing Hill to live in the same quarters as all of you." he said, indicating to Maria who was standing on his right hand side. I noticed a small smile appear on Steve's face. _Hmm...suspicious. I wonder whether they are together or something?_ The woman in question seemed very uptight and, by the rumours at S.H.I.E.L.D, she had never changed. Had something about her changed or did the soldier just have a crush on the deputy? Seemed like I would have to take it upon myself to find out the truth.

"Any questions?" he asked, not actually wanting to answer any.

"Yeah." Tony said, raising his hand. "Where are we gonna stay? I mean no offense but I doubt that anyone wants to stay in Avengers Tower now. It's going to need a lot of repairs."

"A team is already on it and you won't need to worry about accommodation. We have that planned out. A new building for a new team."

"It's not really a new team is it. It's just a team with extra bits added on." Tony interjected and Fury glared at him once more. I had a feeling Fury didn't like him. I also had the feeling that nobody liked Stark in the first place. I certainly wasn't that fond of him.

"Fine. A new building for a team with extra bits added on. It would probably be best if you spoke with Agent Moore about her life before you go to sleep. I do not want you getting to know her when we land tomorrow. Goodnight." he said and left the room immediately. Hill stepped forward and motioned to the door.

"I shall take you to you temporary living quarters." she said and we rose from our seats.

As we walked down the corridor, I noticed that Pietro walked back with Wanda and the rest of the group. He looked at me like he was confused. I think he was uncertain of whether to trust me or not. I felt bad that I didn't tell him the truth, but at the time I wasn't telling anyone. I didn't want him to judge me about the truth of my past.

"We already have a room set up if you were worried by the way." Hill said to me as I walked with her and Steve. They seemed awfully close.

"Thank you. I am most grateful for your hospitality." I said, trying to make myself feel a little less guilty about staying in their facilities.

"No problem. It was the least we could do for you." Steve said.

"Well thank you. I appreciate it." I smiled and Steve returned the smile. I noticed that Hill's eyes flickered towards the ground and I heard her huff in annoyance. _Time to play._ "So how long have you two been together?"

"Who two?" they asked simultaneously.

"You two." I said and I could see them both beginning to blush. "You two are together, right?" I asked and Steve opened his mouth to speak, however he couldn't say anything. Hill was left to take do the talking.

"We are not together." she said, keeping her tone cool and professional. Even though she kept her words strong, I could tell that she was nervous about the whole subject of her and Rogers being together. It made me smile slightly.

"You two seem close."

"We...do?" Steve asked, eyebrow raised.

"Yeah. Just wondered whether you were or not." I said and continued walking with them. _I'm such a match maker!_ As I couldn't be in a relationship, I was usually the one who would sort everyone else's out, whether it was fixing them or making people get together. It was kinda my job apart from being a S.H.I.E.L.D agent. _Maybe I can put matchmaking on my CV? Probably..._ "Anyway, where are we heading to?" I asked, after a long wait which was beginning to get awkward.

"Right here." she said, reaching a door at the end of the the corridor. On the door was the Avengers symbol that made me smile slightly. I was becoming part of the team. How is this even possible? "Now, this is brand new, so no messing it up. Clint, Tony, Sam…" she said and swished her straightened hair around so that it fell over her shoulder. "I'm talking to you three."

"Whaaaaat?" Tony said, throwing his hands up.

"You can't trust us?" Sam asked, sounding hurt.

"Like we would ever damage anything…" Clint added, putting a hand to his heart.

Hill rolled her eyes and placed her finger on the scanner. I heard it unlocked and she said "Your fingerprints have all been added to the system. Only you guys, Fury and me can open this door."

We entered and I thought I was going to faint. _This is most beautiful room I have ever seen in my life._ The room we walked into was the main living room, I guessed. There were four large sofas facing each other in a circle surrounding a coffee table. It actually looked quite homely. The large windows were at least four metres high and had a gorgeous view of the clouds and the sea below.

She took us through to show us the kitchens and the bedrooms. We all had our own and she said the ones at the Avengers base were custom designed to each person and would be a much higher standard. _Higher standard? How can the standard be higher?_ Everything looked like it cost a fortune.

"Meet in about 15 minutes in the living room." she informed us and left us to go round our own rooms in private for a few minutes. My room had a black circular table in it and a couple of chairs surrounding it. I guessed every room was the same, because they wouldn't know how to personalise it if they were unaware of who was staying. The standard S.H.I.E.L.D bedroom that I used to have was much smaller and the quality of the furniture was much lower. I felt bad that I had a better living quarter than the other agents.

My bed had black sheets with a white frame surrounding and supporting it. The walls were painted in white the whole way round, the only separation being the floor to ceiling windows that gave a beautiful view of outside. We were in the clouds and it looked wonderful out there.

I noticed the balcony outside, went out, feeling the cold air rush onto my face, and shut the door so that nothing blew over inside. It was almost like I was living a dream. We were flying in this invisible helicarrier and it was crazy. I shut my eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling the madness. I heard someone cough to my left and saw Pietro standing there, his arm leaning against the balcony bar that was a metre away from mine. _Shit. Is he still angry at me for lying about how I got into S.H.I.E.L.D?_ I let the breath go and he spoke. "I know you couldn't tell me earlier about what happened to you when before you were brought to S.H.I.E.L.D." he said, looking towards the balcony floor, the wind causing his hair to blow over his face slightly. "I was a little angry at you."

"Yeah, I noticed." I replied, trying not to sound too rude about it, but sometimes I couldn't control my attitude.

"Sorry." he said, looking like he actually meant it. He was too polite and manly to say that he was hurt. Pietro seemed like a laid back kinda guy. The type who would wear the most casual clothes for every occasion, but go on a date and wear a suit just for a change, even though he would only wear a suit to funerals. "So are you going to tell us what happened to you as a kid? That was a lie wasn't it? What you told me?" he said and I nodded my head solemnly, feeling guilty that I hadn't told him the truth. "Because...when Fury said rescued you…" He couldn't seem to say the right words, but I kinda got what he wanted to say.

"I'm sorry for lying to you, Pietro. I have to tell everyone now that I'm with the team, I guess. I think Hill mentioned that she wanted...wanted a report on what happened to me and the Avengers have the right to know what happened." I wasn't comfortable with telling the Avengers, but I knew how to act strong in public instead of breaking down into an emotional mess. The first time I talked with Fury I was fragile, but I had learnt to build up a barrier to stop the weakness.

"Okay." he said, shifting his eyes from the clouds to my face. "I'm guessing it is bad? That's why you didn't tell me?"

"Yeah. I didn't exactly...have the best childhood." I said, leaning against the bar that was on my balcony. I didn't really want to go into detail about it, because I had only just met this guy. A few hours ago. I knew I could trust him with information, to be honest I knew I could trust any of them with information except from Stark, but I had taken a liking to Pietro. I had met many guys in my time at S.H.I.E.L.D. He was one of the nicest by far.

"The Avengers all have their history with darkness, regret and guilt. We share it. It's what I have learnt since being here." I said, looking out at the sea below. The helicarrier was now at low cloud level, so we could see the sea. The waves looked so calm and it reminded me of how much I liked training in swimming at S.H.I.E.L.D. "They come together though and built this team." Pietro said, bringing me back to our conversation.

"Sounds pretty airtight." I said, trying not to think about the fact that there felt like a block between me and them. They all seemed pretty close. _How was I supposed to fit in with Gods?_

"You'll ease into it." he smiled and I sent him a smile too. "You want to go and get some food?" he asked.

"Yeah sure." I said, trying to sound like I wasn't starving, and went back into my bedroom. _I could definitely get used to this._ I heard a knock at the door and frowned slightly before realising that it was Pietro. _Super speed. Need to get used to that, even though I haven't actually seen him use his super speed yet._ I walked over and opened it. "That must come in handy a lot."

"It has it's perks." he said and smiled. We walked down the corridor and to be honest it felt slightly awkward between us. We didn't really have anything to discuss apart from Avengers. I scanned my brain for something as we walked, but I couldn't think of anything. _Oh wait!_ "You and your sister seem close." I said. _Good idea. Pin the conversation on him. He's the one who talks._

"Yeah. We get on very well. Never have arguments. Well, unless she is being annoying." he said, his accent slightly stronger. I noticed that when he talked about Sokovia or Wanda. "I usually just use the excuse that I was born 12 minutes before her."

I laughed with him and said "Yeah, I've heard family can be like that." I took a second to think about my own family. I had no idea where they were right now. I didn't really have anyone. I had my apartment, but not really anything else. That reminded me that I needed to speak to Hill.

We arrived at the kitchen and I said to Pietro "I'll be back in a moment." He looked confusedly at me, but nodded all the same.

When I reached the living room, I saw Hill already sitting there on a sofa with a Apple macbook on her knee. "Miss Hill?" I asked and she looked up from the screen.

"Miss Moore." she greeted and shut the lid of the laptop, which must've contained something confidential that she didn't want me to see. She shuffled up so I could sit next to her as she asked "What may I do for you?"

"Well I was just wondering about living arrangements. I have an apartment in the city and I do rather quite like it." I said.

"And you are asking whether you would be able to stay there?" she asked and I nodded.

"Just until I get used to the Avengers scene. I thought it might be more appropriate." I said and she smiled.

"For the first week, that may not be possible. Obviously, I can't tell you why. You will find that out later." she said, a smirk tugging on her face. _What has she got planned for us?_ "But after that I don't see why it wouldn't be a problem."

"Fantastic." I said and got up from my seat. I walked away, but stopped myself and walked up to her again.

She looked up at me and asked "Forgotten something?"

"Are you and the Captain really not together?" I asked and she shook her head, the blush that she had earlier not appearing this time. _Perhaps she was becoming immune..._

"We are co-workers and relationships are not permitted between agents." she said, firmly.

"So you don't think that he is attractive?" I asked and her lips parted, walking away as she thought about her answer. I liked their relationship. They seemed sweet together. Hill was all about order, and I guess Cap was too, but he seemed more relaxed about it.

"Are you trying to set those two up?" Pietro asked as I walked into the kitchen, jumping onto a nearby stool and resting my arms on the table.

"No, wouldn't dream of it." I said, smiling slightly.

"Sure." he said, not believing me and smiling behind the glass he was drinking out of. "Cereal bar?" he asked, holding one up in his hand. I nodded and he threw it to me. I nearly didn't catch it, my co-ordination not being overly great. I tried the bar, the bar feeling heavenly as I hadn't eaten in a while.

"Wow, these are really good." I said, smiling as I tried to keep the food content in my mouth.

"I know!" he said, food nearly dropping out of his mouth. He was such a relaxed guy and he seemed very open with me. I don't know whether he acted like this with the other Avengers or whether it was just woman-kind. "So what do you think of the team?"

"They seem alright. Your sister seems quite nice. Romanoff seems to have a bit of a closed personality. Sam, Tony and Clint are troublemakers of course. And Tony is an idiot."

"You have seen Stark's idiotic side then?" he asked.

"By saying that I guess that you have too?" I replied with a smile.

He nodded. "It can come out now and again and I don't think I've gotten used to it yet. His mistakes nearly killed us...literally…" he said, looking down at the floor. "but me and my sister have learned to forgive him in the short time that we have known him."

"You talk from experience?" I asked.

His lips parted and he took a deep breath. He shook his head and replied "Not at all. I've just heard about his past."

I caught his eyes and I could tell that he was lying. I nodded, knowing that he didn't really trust me enough to tell me about whatever experience he had with Stark. Something did affect him, but I wasn't going to be intrusive. "Okay." We ate some more to fill the silence and I thought of something to talk about. "The others seem nice too."

"Yeah…" he said, finishing the last bite of his energy bar. "They are a nice bunch. Good mix of abilities, yes?"

"Do you get along with them all?" I asked, jumping up on the kitchen counter.

"Most of the time. I have only been with them a short amount of time, but I seem to get along with them pretty well."

"Don't you guys get into fights at all?"

"Oh God all the time." he said, opening another snack bar and eating it even quicker than the last one. "But all families fight I guess."

"You guys do seem like a family." I said, trying not to feel excluded and failing to.

"Well most of the members don't have them." he said, grabbing another snack bar. "They've built their families out of people around them. Most of them have been through the same experiences and it's nice to share those experiences with them." he said, finishing off the bite of this third snack bar. He opened a variety of cupboard doors and finally found what he was looking for. He picked out the bread and took out three slices. He buttered them and I looked at him confused.

He was ready to take a bite of his sandwich, but stopped when he noticed that I was looking at him. "What?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"How come you eat so much? Haven't you had lunch?" I asked, shocked at his appetite, and he shook his head.

"I need more food to function. My metabolism moves much faster than a normal person therefore I need to replenish my energy at a higher amount. If I don't eat I can't use my powers. Well, if I eat less then my powers won't work as efficiently."

"But if I eat less, my powers aren't diminished." I replied.

"Yeah, but I'm burning more energy, because of my speed. You're movements have less intensity."

"Ah right." I said understand, but felt slightly stupid that I didn't know that. I saw him spread the butter on his bread and then go into the fridge, searching for something. He finally found it and squirted it onto his bread.

"Ketchup?" I asked. "You're actually going to eat that?"

"You should try it!" he said, folding over the bread and handing the sandwich to me.

"No. That's disgusting." I said, turning up my nose dramatically.

He laughed and said "Just try it." I considered it, pouting slightly at the thought of eating the ketchup and butter sandwich, before slowly reaching towards his hand to take it. He passed it to me and I brought it up to my lips, hesitating for a moment. I looked at the speedster and he nodded with encouragement for me to eat it. I sighed and took a bite of the sandwich.

 _Oh my goodness. I had tasted sandwiches, but no sandwich had ever tasted with good without any actual filling in it._ "This is amazing." I said, wiping a bit of ketchup from the side of my lips.

"I know right." he said, taking a bite of another one he had made quickly using his powers.

"How did you even think of this?"

"Actually it was Wanda. She got bored when I was out shopping for groceries. I came back, tried it and told everyone in Sokovia, which really isn't that many people when you think about the small area we live in." he said, not realising at all that he had said 'live in' instead of 'lived in'. "It kind of became a craze over the next week."

"It takes a lot of effort to start a craze here." I replied.

"You people have weird crazes." he said, taking another bite of a different sandwich.

"All Avengers meet in the living room for debrief." JARVIS' voice came over the speakers and Pietro swallowed the section of sandwich he had just taken a bite out of. I froze for a second, realising that I would have to speak to everyone about what happened to make me this way. I thought the Maximoff kid wouldn't notice it, but he did. Maybe his super-speed slowed down time to see my reaction to the announcement?

"Hey, Riley." he said, making me turn my head to him, his uncommon accent making me more surprised every time I spoke to him.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Everything's going to be fine." he said with a reassuring smile. I gave a brief smile back before heading into the living room after the male Sokovian..

 **Can't wait to hear your reviews. I thought it would be better to write long chapters and post once a week to make it consistent instead of small chapters and more often, because that means that I can write more chapters overall and that means more fanfiction, which is always good.**


	3. Introductions

**LONGEST CHAPTER EVER! I felt like you deserved this! Not updating for another two weeks, but then it is BAM BAM BAM chapter after chapter :P**

 **Response to reviews:**

 **Princess2016 - Yeah she did. Can't wait to write more about them together.**

 **Anonymous - I'm glad you like the power. I thought it was a cool thing to try. I'm so happy that you are really enthusiastic about it. Long and in depth reviews are practically what I live for. Hopefully I will continue to make this story better each chapter. :)**

 **Moonleaf Stormrunner - When exams have finished in two weeks, I should be updating every couple of days and thank you for the review.**

 **Howling2themoon - Glad you like it :)**

Pietro seemed like he was a mix of the funny parts of Stark and the chivalrous parts of Steve. I guessed that it was his normal character and based it upon the other Avengers, but I had grown up around the time when Stark and Steve were really famous, so I had based my judgement according on what history had said. I sat down on one of the chairs next to Hill, not feeling comfortable enough to sit next to any of the others. Pietro had decided to sit on the next sofa that was perpendicular to mine. The square shape that the sofas created made it impossible not to be seen, but with Hill sitting on my left in the middle of my sofa and Pietro on the right sofa next to me, I felt in a secure environment away from the others.

Maria seemed professional, which was the only thing that I would be able to deal with right now. No emotion for this confession was the only way I was going to get through it. She smiled at me slightly, but I could tell she was worried about what I was going to talk about. I accepted her smile and turned my head to the door that was opening on the other side of the room.

Everyone entered, Stark trailing in about 15 seconds later, and they all sat down on the different sofas. I used my thumb and fore-finger on my right hand to squeeze each one of my fingers on my left hand. It was one of my nervous ticks. I placed my hands firmly against my thighs when I realised what I was doing and looked up at the others. They were all talking to each other, apart from one. Clint was sitting on the sofa opposite me, in the position directly opposite mine, and he was just...staring at me. He smiled softly and I smiled back before Hill interrupted us. Clint seemed like a nice guy. I heard rumours that him and Natasha were a couple, but I wasn't sure about it.

"Everyone settle down please." Hill announced and everyone quietened. It was then that I noticed that Steve wasn't sitting next to her, but James Rhodes. However, Steve didn't seem fazed by the idea of them sitting together, so I pushed it to the back of my mind. "We are here to talk about Miss Moore's history, so if you could show her some respect as she talks with you." Hill said and clicked her pen in her hand. I showed a small smile to her. It was sweet that she told the others to respect what I said.

 _Speaking...right..._ I thought to myself after a silence filled the room. "I err…" I said, looking round at everyone. "I don't really...know where to start…" I said, rubbing my hands against each other.

"How about your childhood? What was it like?" she asked, head staring down at her clipboard below, surely making notes on me, but she angled it so I couldn't see what she was writing.

"My childhood. Okay…" I said and stopped the hand motions. They were looking at me, not with any particular hunger in their eyes, more like concern. I found that peculiar, because they had only just met me, even though they were this worried. "Well...my parents were called Patrick and Elisa Nicholls. My name was Charlie Rose Nicholls back then." I began, remembering how much I wanted to keep my name when Fury told me to change it. "They gave birth to me in a hospital in Manhattan and I grew up in a small school there. I went onto college and university and after that…" I said, pausing slightly to go back on myself. "Well there wasn't anything after that…not in education anyway…"

"What happened?" Vision asked, his voice sounding concerned even though he was just a machine.

"You always hear about those missing people that are never found and everyone thinks it's one big mystery, but it's not. It's a tragedy. I was kidnapped by someone on my way to university." I said, not going so quickly that I sounded rushed, but not too slow that I sounded emotional. "They put me in the boot and drove me to the base. When I came to consciousness I was in chains."

I looked around, assessing everyone's responses.

Hill was writing down notes, practically buried in them, not really acknowledging the information that I was saying. I think she just wrote what she heard and didn't think about it. Vision had the blank expression that I had often found in his face whenever he wasn't with Wanda. Wanda's lips were parted, probably in shock from what she was hearing me talk about. It isn't exactly the average conversation. James, Sam and Clint looked like it was the end of the world as we know it, their sad frowns pulling their bodies down into the ground to be buried deep. However, they looked as if they had heard the story all before and I could've sworn Sam nodded his head at one point, understanding where I was coming from. Tony surprised me. He actually looked like he was listening to what I was saying. I was unsure about whether I should've sticked to my judgement of Stark. Natasha had a calm expression on her face, but I could see anger boiling up inside of her. Her eyes were her one weakness. They showed too much commitment.

Then lastly there was Pietro. He looked as if he was about to burst into tears, which I found hard to believe of a man so cocky. His eyes were full of sympathy and I suddenly felt vulnerable for sharing the information with the team. His lips were pursed as if the information hurt him more than it hurt me. I shifted in my seat slightly and spoke again.

"They injected me with serums of all different varieties and my body went through so much pain that at one poin…." I trailed off, noticing Pietro's eyes turn angry. "At one point, I felt like giving up. Just finding a way to end my life before the serum's did." I said and I noticed Maria's head look up at me. She _was_ listening.

"But I was determined that I would make it through. I would scream for days, because the serum felt like it was burning through my blood." I breathed out quietly. I decided not to mention the romantic attachment that I found at the facility. It didn't matter and wasn't relevant. He was just a dream in my head...a dream that felt like a nightmare at times. The man I fell for was my trainer, but I didn't see him very often. I missed him sometimes, but I wasn't stuck in that past life. Thinking about how I was in the here and now, I carried on with my story, forgetting about the love I once had for that man.

"Finally, one of the serum's worked. It felt weird. I went through these stages of fading from invisible to visible and I didn't know how to control it. They would try and teach me, but then torture me if I didn't learn fast enough." I told them, not stopping to cry or sob or pause. I wanted to get it out of the way.

"I got to grips with the powers, but once I did my facility was broken into by S.H.I.E.L.D." I saw many of them relax from the idea of me being rescued and the torture ending. I think S.H.I.E.L.D seemed like a safe ideology for them. Steve was still tense.

"They rescued me and tried to get all the information out of them that I could, but I didn't know what the base's organisation was until later, when I discovered that it was HYDRA." I saw Steve fidget from the word leaving my lips and I moved on quickly. "Fury told me to keep my power a secret, as the world wasn't ready for me to come out as a enhanced yet. I became a working S.H.I.E.L.D office and field agent. He wiped all my records, change my backstory and moved on with my life as Riley Moore."

The room was dead silent. Even Maria had stopped writing her notes down. They seemed frozen for a moment, before Tony spoke. I expected idiotic words to come out of his mouth, but he genuinely seemed concerned. "We are here if you need us and if you need any counselling or whatever to get over it, then I will pay whatever you need."

"No, I can't allow you do th-"

"I said that we are here for you…" he said. "Well, they are all here for you and then I'm the financial backing for everything." Natasha rolled her eyes. Even though Tony was being a bragging idiot, I did appreciate the small gift he was offering me.

"Does anybody else have any questions for Miss Moore?" Maria asked, bringing the subject back. I looked around the room and no one had their hand raised. I couldn't tell if they feared me or they genuinely didn't have a question for me.

"If that's finished then I will leave you in her company." Hill said and stood. She turned to me. "Fury has decided that you will pose as my assistant to maintain your cover as long as possible, meaning that you can hang around with us in public, but not look suspicious." she explained and turned to walk away.

"Maria?" Steve called. The woman turned back around to face us, a small look of surprise across her young face.

"Yes?" she asked, sounding somewhat impatient.

"We're watching a movie…" Steve said, gesturing to the screen.

"I know." she said, her eyebrows crossed in confusion and there was an awkward silence in the room. I didn't understand how she wasn't catching onto what Steve was trying to ask her. Thankfully, Tony spoke up to save the tension from getting worse.

"Do you want to watch it with us?" he asked and Maria looked at the screen, cautious about the idea.

"I can't. I need to go over the mission files from Sokovia before I sleep. It'll take half an hour and by that time you'll already have started the film, so it's fine." she replied, almost robotically. She didn't sound upset, but she didn't sound overly thrilled to be avoiding the movie night. I wondered whether that was something that had ever featured in her life. The thought of Mara in sweats, watching a movie on the sofa and lazily eating popcorn made me chuckle quietly to myself as Steve continued to persuade her.

"Well, why don't we help you quickly now and then you can watch it with us?" Steve asked and she smiled slightly. Tony scoffed and shook his head.

"That sounds like too much effort." Stark said and slid lower on the sofa to lean his feet on the coffee table. Everyone else could just put their feet up. No one else seemed to notice that Stark was actually quite small. Even though he was the oldest one out of the group, he acted like the youngest.

"Well, I'll go then." Steve volunteered. ' _He's keen'_ I thought in my head, not wanting to get shot at by Maria for speaking up.

"No, I couldn't poss-"

"I must insist. It's unfair for you to miss out." Steve said and started walking before she could stop him. She looked at him like he was insane for a few seconds before her face relaxed to neutral. She opened her mouth, close to speaking up to him, but shut her mouth and sighed as he was nearing the door already.

"We'll be back in 15 minutes." she said and quickly left the room to catch up with Steve.

"They seemed to be getting along swell." Tony said, trying to imitating Rogers at the end of his sentence. They all laughed and I asked the question everybody needed to.

"So are they together or not?" I said and they chuckled again. I just wanted a change of subject. They obviously realised that I didn't want to talk about it, so they moved on with the conversation. I thanked God that they didn't go back to the subject of my childhood.

"They will be together eventually." Wanda said, smiling and leaning back on the chair, her brother watching her as she did. I had always wanted a sibling and felt a pang of jealous radiate through my heart at the sight of their little protective ticks.

"So are we waiting for them?" Rhodey asked.

"Why not?" Sam replied. "We need to get our food and everything, so we can do that in the meantime."

"JARVIS, cook us twenty pizza's and get us all coke's." Tony ordered, sitting up. _So...JARVIS is his slave?_

"Well, I want a water anyway." I said, getting up and walking to the kitchen.

"Hey, I'll just get JARVIS to get you one." Tony shouted.

"I'm fine thanks. I'm not lazy." I said, now strutting towards the kitchen. I was still angry with Stark, because he didn't do anything for himself. He just had his servant, JARVIS, do it for him. Yeah, he created all this great technology, but it made him lazy. Also, he may be better than he was when he was running Stark Industries and selling weapons, but I will never forget that he made all those weapons to kill people with.

I walked over to the counter and looked through the cupboards for a glass. My search took a while, but I soon found the cupboard with the glasses in. _The top shelf? It just had to be the top shelf._ Even if Tony could be bothered to get his own drinks, he would need a step ladder to reach it. "Oh come on." I whispered, reaching on my tips toes and trying to jump up to get the glass. Why did the glasses have to be so high?

"This is painful." I heard someone across the room say, but when I turned around, the person was next to me. Pietro reached up to the top of the cupboard, slightly on his tip toes to get the glass. I could see him wince slightly and then I remembered that he was injured. I tried to ignore his chest so close to me as he reached up to get it. His top was a tight fit against his abs and I couldn't help but take a quick unnoticeable glance. He went back with his feet against the ground and my eyes went back to his. "Every short girl needs a tall best friend, no?" he said, his accent making me smile and pointing the glass towards me. A smug grin swept onto his lips and I refrained myself from staring at it for too long.

"I'll manage...somehow." I said, taking it and walking over to the tap. I knew he wanted to talk to me about what I had admitted in the living room, but I didn't want to say anything. "I thought I said no speeding."

"I feel better." he argued, simply, as he shrugged. I focused on filling up the glass in my hand with water, half to get the job done and half to distract myself, and him, from conversation. "Look…" he began, but I interrupted him.

"I'm sorry about lying about my background." I blurted, placing the glass on the side and turning to him. He was leaning on the side of the kitchen table between two chairs, his face tilted to the side so that I could see his tantalising, deep, blue eyes. I let out a loud, harsh breath and bit my lip as I stared at the floor.

"It's fine." he said, holding up his hands. "I judged you and that was wrong of me."

"I don't blame you." I said, leaning my palms into the counter and lifting my head. "But...you judged me?" I asked. He groaned and made an apologetic face.

"I thought you were a bit of ass for lying to me, yes?" he replied, shrugging his shoulders. I smirked slightly at his comment, but swiftly went to reply.

"I don't blame you." I admitted. "It was rude and I'm-"

"Stop apologising." he said, before I could even say the first syllable of the word 'sorry'. "You don't stop apologising. I mean it's cute, but there's no need for it." he added, angling his head to the side so he could look at me. I felt my cheeks turn a light crimson as I sipped some water to try and cool myself down. He was too much of a charmer most of the time. "Besides, I didn't know you like I do now."

"All it takes is a couple of hours and all my secrets are revealed." I replied, saying it flippantly, but in reality I meant it with serious truth. I had basically revealed my life story to these people who I hadn't even had a real conversation with. They didn't know about the stuff that mattered to me. I wasn't sure whether I trusted them all or not...yet. They seemed like trustworthy people, but close people have betrayed me before. Pushing that aside, I evaluated my opinion on the group - stubborn and skillful, but dangerous.

"I still think you have some, yes?" he said, smirking at me.

"I may have some little secrets still locked away in my mind." I teased and walked towards him, forgetting about the water that I had gone in there to get.

"Am I ever going to know them?" he asked, the side of his mouth rising up slightly. Pietro was a smug little bastard. I could knock him down in two minutes straight without thinking, but I wouldn't want to. I considered telling the team everything, but decided that I would keep it to myself for the while.

"Maybe…" I replied, resting a hand next to him on the table, my fingernails making a clicking noise when I tapped them every so often in a steady rhythm of four.

"Maybe?" He raised an eyebrow, but then rested it after a few seconds of silence. I didn't recognise the silence until his eyebrow dropped. His flirting never ended, but I liked someone noticing me. It felt nice to be noticed for once. It made me feel cheap, in all honesty, but I liked our little quips at each other. Nothing was going to happen between us, I knew that, he knew that, but a bit of harmless flirting was a nice change from the serious way things were run on the helicarrier. Those thoughts shot out of my head in a second when I remembered that I was here to work, not play with my patient.

"One day." I answered seriously and pushed off the table, grabbing my glass of water and heading back to the living room. As soon as I walked out the door, Pietro zoomed passed me, almost knocking the drink out of my hand. He was trouble. He sat down on the couch and threw his head back, a shit-eating grin on his face that reeked of arrogance. _Rude._

"You coming slow coach?" he asked and patted the seat next to him. I rolled my eye, but sat down with him. At least he was feeling better. I still didn't like the fact that he was speeding round, and he knew that, but I don't think he cared. Pietro reminded me of Rogers in a way, obeying what his heart told him rather than his head. It was a stupid choice, but would sometimes pay off, the battle of New York being an example of that for the Captain.

"JARVIS, how long until the pizza's are ready?" Tony asked, his head tilted to the ceiling.

"They will be 4 seconds, Sir." the A.I. replied and the pizza came up through the table in perfect timing. The looked delicious and I saw a margarita one that had my name written on it. I subconsciously licked my lips and tensed my stomach when I heard a faint growl come from it.

"Everyone tuck in…" Stark said, but Clint already had half a slice of pizza in his mouth. "Not that you needed that instruction, as usual." My hand reached out to get a piece, but a blue blur formed next to me and, before I knew it, me and Wanda had pizza in our hands. Pietro shoved his slice in his mouth and I took a bit out of mine, moaning in a satisfaction at the feeling of pizza. I hadn't had it in years. I looked over at Pietro and noticed the pizza was hanging out of his mouth.

"Delightful." I whispered, as the others tucked into the pizza. Wanda, however, noticed and glared eyes at her brother.

"That's disgusting." she dead-panned, not looking or sounding amused at her brother's eating habits.

"What? Me?" he asked, shoving all the pizza into his mouth and grinning. His cheeks were puffy with dough and I stiffed a laugh. Wanda made a disgusted sound as she bit a section of her pizza.

I shoved him in his side, which didn't do much to him at all, irritating me more than him. "God, no manners." I said and laughed. picking up the pizza and putting it into my mouth. He gulped, laughed with me, and then leaned back against the sofa, head resting against the sofa back.

"So Miss Moore" Tony began, chewing on his slice of pizza. "did you have any plans before coming here?" Tony reminded me of an arrogant, snooty journalist that I had met the other day. Rude and interrogative, but intelligent. He was a gatherer of information, which was a very important job on Earth, especially as we were receiving letters from Asgard.

"Well I wanted to continue being a better qualified agent and then become a trainer I guess. I didn't really have a plan beyond that." I answered shrugging as I began to nibble on the crust.

"I don't think anybody does when you work for an organisation like this. No future plans." Clint said, sipping his coke. They all had cokes, which must've been sent by JARVIS when I was in the kitchen. I didn't like JARVIS' slavery.

"Well, I thought of a better life. Kids, marriage," James began to list.

"Love is for children." Natasha said and I raised my eyebrows. I thought I was anti-relationships, but she seemed to take it to the extreme. I had heard the rumours from when she first joined about how dangerous and lethal she was. I guess you have to let your emotions go to become that kind of person.

"You're very opinionated, Miss Romanoff." Stark said, taking a sip of his drink and swishing his head to look at her. _Stark is so very dramatic._

"Are you in love with Pepper?" she retorted and Tony's eyes went wide.

"I er….I do love her...I mean..." he replied, stumbling over his words as he tried to find what to say. I hadn't met Pepper, but from what I had heard, and from what the media had said, she seemed to be nice. A little controlling, but how could she not be when she had to deal with Tony Stark on a daily basis.

"You know that wasn't the question." Clint said, smirking. I noticed Pietro eating a few more slices of pizza. _He had cereal bars earlier, why does he need any more food?_

"Come on Tone, you've been with her for over 6 years. Just tell her once in awhile." Clint added.

"She'll be here in five minutes actually, so we are not talking about this for long. I do love her, but…" he said, taking a sip of his coke, pretending to need a drink, but I think he needed time to think of what he was going to say. "I've never…" He coughed and stood up. "D'you know what, forget it. I'm getting some alcohol." Pietro rushed past us all and pushed Stark back into his seat. _Why was there a problem with Stark drinking?_

"You've never been in love, so you don't know what it feel like." Wanda stated as her brother sat back next to me. I guessed that she read his mind, because I wouldn't have even associated love with Tony Stark.

He sighed and leaned against the sofa. He ran his hands over his face and groaned. "How are you even meant to know? The difference between being in love and just loving someone." He leant his head back.

"Do you care about her more than _anyone_?" Clint said, dramatically.

Stark glared at him and said "Obviously." I think it was the first time I had seen Tony be mildly serious about a topic.

Rhodey spoke up. "I've seen him put himself in danger for her too many times. I'm surprised he isn't dead already." Tony scoffed and we turned our heads at the sound of the lift opening.

"So sorry I'm late." she apologised. She was wearing a blue silky dress with a low back and I noticed the small silver earrings on her ears. Her make-up was light, so it didn't make her look fake, and her hair was in a loose bun, slightly messy and wet from the rain outside. She was wearing flat shoes that still made her look tall. "I had to get a plane over here, but I didn't have any time to cha-" she said, walking down the stairs to us, but stopped talking when she realised that everyone was looking at her. She looked beautiful and I didn't even know who she was. Pepper Potts was the name everyone called her, but I didn't know her real first name. Whenever Coulson had talked about her, it was always Pepper Potts, nothing else. Perhaps Pepper was her first name...that's weird, but I guess celebrities are naming their children after fruits, so I didn't see the problem with a spice.

"What?" she asked, giving everyone confused looks. Tony stood up and walked over to her slowly. He brought up his hand to her cheek and stroked it softly with his thumb. She twitched her eyebrows, confused at his behaviour. _Maybe he isn't like this usually?_ "What's happened?" she asked, probably worried that something had gone wrong.

"Nothing." he said and pressed a light slow kiss on her lips. "Nothing's wrong. You look beautiful." he added and brushed his hand down her shoulder and arm to link their hands. "I'll go and get you some more comfortable clothes okay?" He kissed her cheek and left to get some for her. I had to admire the couple, Tony acting ridiculously cute. I've always wanted a relationship that close.

She walked over to us, slightly confused, and asked "Has something happened?"

"I think he's just realised how lucky he is to have you." Clint said and sipped his beer, not noticing Natasha's eyes resting on him.

"Tony? Lucky to have me? Pl-ease!" she said, slipping off her shoes. She was about to sit down when she noticed me sitting on the sofa. "I don't believe we've met." she said, coming over to shake my hand.

"No, we haven't. My names Riley." I replied, shaking her hand. Her nails were neatly manicured and she seemed to have the softest hands.

"I thought your name was Charlie." Vision said.

"I've gotten used to Riley now." I quickly, trying to sweep over it like I had with everything else regarding my past. "Anyway, where are Hill and Rogers?"

"I don't know. Probably dropped the work and started making out. JARVIS, where are they?" Clint asked.

"Mr. Rogers and Miss Hill are in the corridor, slowly making their way to Miss Hill office." he replied.

"Hang on, they're still doing that?" Sam asked, sounding surprised.

"They stopped on the way to observe the view." he replied and Tony walked back in, raising his eyebrows.

"I think we should just leave them. Steve never seem to stop talking to people." Tony added.

He gave Pepper the clothes and kissed her on the cheek. She smiled and walked out of the room, looking at Stark curiously as she did. "Are you guys usually that way?" I asked, feeling a little surprised at his familiarity with Pepper. It wasn't that they weren't good together, but they seemed to have opposite personalities. _Maybe opposites do attract?_

"You just made me think about her is all." he replied, sitting back down on the sofa, seeming more distracted than usual. It was like he wasn't really with us. "She deserves more than she gets."

"I'm sure she appreciates what you do for her." Wanda said and Tony looked at her curiously, snapping out of his distant gaze.

"Did you read her mind?" he asked, looking a little angry at the powered individual.

"Nothing bad." she said, shrugging, and sipped her coke. Her eyes looked around at the group and her bite her lip. "Sometimes I can't help it and it just happens." she said, looking around at the group with a small amount of fear in her eyes, worried about us judging her for something she couldn't control. I could tell that Wanda wasn't strong enough yet, everybody could, but we all knew she didn't mean any harm. I had only been with the team a few hours, but I really enjoyed their company.

"Can you find out what people think of all of us and then tell us, please? Because I would love to know what the new assistant Hill has in the building thinks of me." Sam said, acting smug and smiling. I was assigned as Hill's new assistant, but he was talking as if I wasn't there.

"Who? Me?" I asked, a little taken back by him. I was new to the group, another girl in the mix, but that didn't mean anything. I didn't expect Sam to be so forward and I didn't realise that he thought of me in _that_ way.

"There's a new girl working for Hill. Arrived a few days ago. Name's...uh...Ella?" Tony guessed, squinting his forehead in thought.

"Elisa." Falcon corrected, picking up another piece of pizza to eat and shoving it into his mouth. Delightful.

"And will I meet her?" I asked the group, feeling excited that there would be another person to meet and that it would be a girl.

Steve nodded. "You should be meeting her tomorrow when we land at the new tower." I looked round at the group, Steve the only one eating properly with a knife and fork and Vision not eating at all.

"Back to my original question...Wanda?" Sam asked, sounding hopeful.

"You know I can't do that Sam. Powers can't be used in that way." she said, smiling to herself. I got the impression that Wanda was proud that she had the abilities, but not fully so. _Who would be?_ Her powers were forcibly given to her. No one wants that. I shivered slightly, trying to get the images of my own nightmares out of my head, and focused on the conversation at hand.

"God darn it." he said, hitting his leg with his palm. "Wish they could be."

"Yeah, that would be extremely helpful." Clint commented, casually, sinking into the couch. Clint seemed very relaxed around everyone, his position, slumped against the sofa, showed how he didn't care about how people viewed him, which was a great way to be. From what I could tell, he was a chilled out guy who seemed to take life as it came. I could imagine him being an nonjudgmental person to talk to in the tower.

"So, movie choices?" Pietro asked and the voices began to cross over each other and merge.

"Mission imposs-"

"The Notebook!"

"We are not watching The Noteb-."

"Saw!"

"But I hate horror movi-"

"Do you guys remember Ha-"

"How about…"

"Bourne Legacy"

"West Side Story?"

"What about-"

"NO MUSICALS"

I turned to Pietro and whispered in his ear as the others continued to shout their favourite movies. "Does this usually happen?"

"Pirates of the-"

"What about Forget M-"

Through all the noise, I heard Natasha mutter "This is painful." I saw her roll her eyes and relax into her seat as they continued to argue, the voices getting a little louder and more competitive. I hadn't thought she could be that...mundane, but it seemed to suit her.

Pietro looked at me, his lips nearly touching my ear. "All the time, as far as I'm aware. They're crazy." My eyes slowly drifted until they locked onto his eyes like a magnet. He smiled slightly and scanned my face. I didn't know what it was about him, but I didn't want to look away and it irritated me. He looked calm and relaxed with me. I think it was the first time I had seen him like this. The others times he was too fast to process and had been more arrogant than Tony. Time had never felt so slow. I felt my lips part and my breath catch, the voices in the background faded out into nothingness. _Why wasn't I blinking? Normal people blink after this amount of time._

"San Andreas!" Tony shouted, breaking the trance between us, and I flinched slightly. _Bloody hell. That idiot billionaire will be the death of me._ Pietro leaned back against the sofa sighing and I stayed on the edge, leaning my elbows on my thighs. I could've sworn I heard Pietro laughing. The Sokovian was attractive, I would admit that, but professionalism was what the basis of most of my relationships were on. I was informed earlier that relationships are acceptable between Avengers and other people, but non-Avengers didn't have that privelage. I didn't want to get into any relationship further than a friendship with Pietro, just incase it would compromise me in the field, if I had that honour.

"Yes! Bit depressing, but still a good film!" Clint shouted. I felt someone's eyes on me and turned to see Wanda looking at me. She smiled and I smiled back, not really catching onto what she was referencing to. ' _Hey'_ I heard her voice say in my head. I went wide-eyed and furrowed my eyebrows. _What is she doing? How is this even possible? Am I going mad?_ It didn't make any sense at the time. Someone talking in your head doesn't really make much sense on a normal day, let alone a day meeting the Avengers. My hands flew up to my ears as I poked the sides of them, trying to sort out my brain.

 _'Pietro is an idiot by the way, just ignore him'_ she said in my mind. She almost sounded a little disgusted and I gave her a weird look, before moving my gaze. I looked at Pietro who was busy eating pizza, but he noticed when I leaned forward to get a drink and I flicked my eyes away. As I reached for it, I pressed my hand on his knee to balance myself, which I didn't realise I did until I flicked my eyes to Wanda, suddenly feeling the warmth that I was emitting from my hand onto his leg. I came back, quickly retracting my hand and I saw Wanda raise an eyebrow. Too much eye contact was going on right now.

"How do you do that?" I whispered, trying to forget about my hand. It was burning in embarrassment from touching Pietro and I'm pretty sure my cheeks were too.

"It's one of my powers." she replied and I nodded, trying to imagine what the extent of her powers were.

"So you can have conversations with anyone you want to without anyone else hearing?" I asked and she nodded. It was incredible how fascinating she was, even though she hadn't been fully trained.

 _"Yep._ she replied, transmitting her speech into my mind and I smiled at her, fascinated by her abilities. _This is incredible.._.I thought to myself. "People can reply too you know."

"Really? How?" I asked, intrigued.

"You just need to think about your message hard enough and focus onto me." she replied. _Sometimes thoughts are loud enough that I can pick up on them without even properly entering someone's mind, but that's only happened a couple of times, mainly with..._ She didn't finish her sentence. I wondered why she hadn't. I remember her saying that Pepper's thoughts were loud, but that couldn't have been the problem. I saw her face drop slightly as she looked at an oblivious Pietro and I almost wanted to go over and give Wanda a hug, but I knew that we had only just met each other and it would look a little strange to anyone else.

I looked at Pietro, who staring at us confused, and then back to Wanda. "I'm sorry." I whispered and took another piece of pizza.

"It's fine." she replied and blinked the tears in her eyes away so that no one would notice. Everyone was having their private little conversations as they were getting the movie ready anyway.

"Can someone please tell me what's going on?" Pietro asked and Wanda's frown turned into a little smile. _God, he's always being nosey._ she told me and I couldn't help, but hold back a laugh. Pietro was totally confused by this point, which just caused me and Wanda to laugh more. "Not cool." he said, leaning back against the chair and sipping his coke.

Half way through the movie, the Avengers were all having small conversations. We had decided to start without Steve and Maria. The fifteen minute mark had gone and Tony couldn't be bothered to wait any longer. Pepper had come to join us and sat on top of Tony's lap, her legs hooking across the chair she was in. I decided to sit with Nat, Clint, Pietro and Wanda for the movie as there was a big sofa facing the screen that Pietro had sped across to before anyone else could get the chance.

Natasha and Clint were sitting in front of us on the floor and then one the sofa was me on the left, Wanda in the middle and Pietro on the right. Tony and Pepper were slouched on the one of the chairs on the left and the other seat next to them Sam sat on, still eating some of the pizza no one wanted to finish. I thought Pietro would finish it, but he had apparently 'gotten bored with pizza'. On the other side, Vision sat in a chair and then James on another one. They looked like a proper family I just hoped that I would fit into the team's image.

"How old were you when they experimented on you?" Wanda whispered to me out of the blue. I couldn't tell whether Pietro heard or not, but I saw his head flicker towards us and then back at the screen, blue whisps emitting from his head. Everyone was having their own conversations, half interested in the film, even Natasha and Clint in front of us. I hadn't expected her question and I thought about why she was asking it, finally concluding that she was probably interested to see whether we were brought up the same way.

"18 years of age." I replied, keeping my voice low enough so she could hear, but not so that the others could.

"And do you still remember your parents?" she asked me in a sweet manner. I knew she wasn't trying to upset me, and she wasn't, it was just difficult for me to think about.

"Sometimes..." I told her truthfully. "They occasionally come to me in my dreams, but I never remember everything about them. The torture over time made me forget about my past life." I told her quietly. I didn't want the others to find out about the nightmares, but Wanda seemed to be the most trustworthy girl and I had to make friends somehow. It wasn't that Natasha and Pepper weren't trustworthy, but Wanda had already seen into my mind. I wondered whether she already knew that I had nightmares, that she knew everything I was telling her.

"Well if you ever need me I'm here." She told me and put her hand over my one on my knee. It was comforting to have someone looking out for me. It had been a while since anybody had, especially since I didn't have a roommate or any friends in particular. I had the feeling that I would have to become comfortable around these people so I didn't fight the gesture. "I've been trough the same thing, so come talk if you need to, yes?" It was only then when I noticed how peculiar her accent was. I never really noticed it before, but now I could hear it strongly in her voice.

"Thank you Wanda." I replied and smiled back at her. She had a small sad smile on her face and I understood that she was probably feeling memories resurface from her past, whatever her past was. Oh wait...her parents...they were killed in Sokovia. I remember it on the doctor's report in the notes that it might be an emotional problem. I almost felt guilty for not saying anything any earlier, but didn't dwell on it and gave my apology. "I'm really sorry about your parents. It must've been horrible."

She nodded, looking down at the floor. "It was, but we had to get over it. Pietro looked after me when I got upset." She said, turning her head to him slightly, but he didn't seem to notice. "He got me through the enhancement."

"It must be nice to have a sibling there for you." I replied, thinking about if I had one

"He's always been supportive of me, but I have my new family now. It's been a few days, but I feel like I belong with these people. They understand me." She said, looking at the group. She had lost everything, even her brother for a few moments while he was practically dead, but she was still here. Wanda was such a strong person and I admired her for that. I didn't belong here at all, at least not yet. I groaned inside at the thought of staying away from home for a whole week. Wanda had this enhanced family with her and even though I was enhanced I still felt like the outsider.

"I can imagine them being quite a troublesome family." I replied, feeling a little less awkward with Wanda than before.

"Especially Tony." She said, nodding over to the billionaire. "He can be more than a handful at times."

"Can't imagine that." I said, sarcastically, and she laughed. It was nice to see her laugh, even if it was a small one. "Some of the things they say about him. I mean he _is_ arrogant, but I didn't expect him to be so…" I struggled to find the word, but fortunately Wanda helped me out.

"Caring?" she asked.

"Yeah. I can tell he cares at the same time." I said, staring at him, his eyes shut and his head against Pepper's.

"It's why he does what he does. All his...machines. He wants to save us, but he's going to get himself killed in the process." She said. Glancing over to the man snuggled up to Pepper, his arms tightly wrapped around her waist.

"Is he a good person?" I asked her as she let go of my hand to get her drink.

"He has a good heart, but…" She shook her head. "He is ready to give up his life for anything that would hurt us. Unfortunately, he doesn't realise that it might cost him more than a few million dollars." She eyes him carefully and I wondered whether Wanda's head was more complicated than any of our own. She had other people's memories, their lives, stored up in there. It must be difficult to keep so many lives in there. "He's good to us though."

"The constant sarcasm is a cost you have to bear?" I asked and she laughed.

"Exactly." She smiled and placed her drink back on the table. I liked Wanda. She was sweet and innocent, yet completely the opposite as well. To be honest, I didn't know any of these people. Yes, I had heard about them in the news, even saw them a few times on the helix arrive, but never really talked with them. Clint I had spoken to in the past, but not for a long amount of time. We had been on missions with a whole group of people but I doubted that he remembered me. "Apparently the tower is in a beautiful location." She told me and I suddenly remembered that we were on a helicarrier. The flight was so smooth that I had forgotten about it.

"I can't wait to see what it's like. I've only been in S.H.I.E.L.D buildings really and that was for doctoral reasons."

"Good to know I'm in safe hands." she replied and relaxed back into the sofa. "I'm sorry about my brother by the way." she whispered and I raised my eyebrows in confusion.

"About what?" I asked, reflecting the hushed tone she kept.

"He flirts with everyone." she said, apologetically. That didn't make me feel very special, but she seemed to be right. Pietro looked like the kind of guy to flirt with a lot of girls. He was as smooth with me as the flight was. "It's embarrassing to think about."

"Don't worry about it." I assured her, glancing back and forth to her brother who was too interested in the film to be listening. "I'm not letting him affect me." She smiled, laughing, and lifted her legs up to sit in a cross-legged position. Pietro glanced at her for a moment then flickered his eyes to me, before turning his attention back to the film. The twins were a little strange, but I liked them a lot. Pietro was funny and seemed like a genuinely nice guy, minus all the flirting, and Wanda had such an interesting character. I had a feeling I was going to get along with those two the most out of everyone. If I had to make a list of people I wanted to be friends with, Stark would be at the bottom. For sure.

 **Hello, I am very sorry for these late re-writes, but I have been on a music tour for the past week and a dofe practise expedition immediately before that. I would LOVE for you to review. THANK YOU! Remember to comment mistakes too please.**


	4. Addictions

**This chapter may be a little hard to read and I spent ages on it, so please review :) If there are any mistakes, let me know!**

 **REMINDER - If you want me to write a story for you, just write the idea in a review or PM me. Thank you! And should I change this up to M at some point and I mean a LONG time away, because I want to build their story at T first and then build it up perhaps?**

 **Responses:**

 **Moonleaf Stormrunner - Hey :) Sorry I have had no time to proof read anything, but as soon as my exams are done I will go over the chapters and edit them if necessary, especially the point you brought up. You said about stopping to do the other stories? Do you mean to do the other characters in their own little romances? And do you think I should update the different stories in order of time, so publish one in each in the same timeline. Does that make sense? So Story 1 is linked with story two in chronological order? Publishing them in order even though they are different character's perspectives? I think that's what you are getting at. If so that's a really good point! Just make that a lil' clearer, because right now biology is filling my brain and I can't really concentrate on anything else. :P Also, for some reason FRIDAY really pisses me off and I thought that if he created JARVIS in the first place he can keep him right? I just really don't like FRIDAY. I have nothing against the accent...but it does piss me off as an electronic version. Thank you for the review. I have some really juicy plot points coming up and want to do A LOT of chapters.**

 **Howling2themoon - Thank you for reviewing so often. I really enjoy hearing your feedback and thank you for the good luck! Have a great day :)**

 **Princess 2016 - All will develop soon. If you wish, I can develop a Clintasha story on the side in the summer and publish it just for you? Would that be okay? And did you read my notice at the bottom of the last chapter. Check it out if you didn't and tell me what you think :)**

 **Anonymous - I know, it's fine. I thought that when I saw two mails that were the same! I'm so happy that you like the story so much. As I said the another reviewer, I have some really juicy storylines coming up that you will love. Can't wait to keep my ideas out there. Connecting the stories will be fun :) Wow. I can't believe you like this so much! Really overjoyed that you do! I will be doing fanfiction for the rest of my life, so don't worry about not getting stories. Thank you for the luck. :) And okay. I'll look out for you Quicksilver1.**

 **Lemiras - Thank you so much. I put a lot of thoughts into this and what I want the characters to be like, which is why this is probably going to be the longest and most complex story that I've done. Pietro is a character that MCU didn't really explore, because you know...obvious death in AOU, so I thought that exploring him in this one would give people an insight into his character. I'm also gonna include some comic book stuff I think, but for now I hope you enjoy this chapter, which I thought was cute, but showed their friendship.**

 **Erudessa-grabielle - Yes! Falcon does not get enough love. He is so funny. Thank you so much for the review! I really love the support!**

The next morning, I woke up at 3:30, not trying to make a good impression, but deciding to stick to my normal early morning routine that I had done for the past however many years. I always had the tradition of going to the gym in the morning, even if it was only for a little while. Whenever I was feeling _really_ crap I would go on the treadmill for about 1 minute, then give up and go and get a doughnut.

I went to my bag and changed into a pair of black leggings, a grey long sleeved sports top and my blue sports trainers that made me miss home a little more than usual. I was stuck here for the next week or so, not that I was complaining. Everything was so luxurious, but after the Ultron invasion, I feel like I need to make sure my house is still intact in Manhattan. I tightly tied the laces on the my shoes and moved onto doing my hair into a ponytail, also very tight. _Who likes a loose ponytail when exercising?_

I made my way down the hallway, trying to find something interesting on the black corridor walls, but failing. I liked the silence of the corridor, the feeling of everyone sleeping as I walked around. I hoped that no one minded me doing so, but I couldn't think of a problem with it. I had always been a light sleeper. The hours at the HYDRA facility as they experimented on me drilled the idea of getting only about three hours of sleep into my head.

We went to bed at about eleven, Wanda telling me about the gym facilities last night. I was meant to ask her where to go then, but forgot as we quickly went onto talking about something else. Me and Wanda seemed to be getting along quite well and I enjoyed her upbeat company. She made me forget about the bad things in life. Remembering that I still had no idea where I was going, I decided to get a drink before I would ask JARVIS to direct me. However, when I arrived in the kitchen, I was surprised to see two other people in there.

"Wanda? Pietro?" I said, walking towards the cupboard to get a drink as Wanda fixated on me, looking a little surprised at my entrance into the kitchen. Pietro had only shot a glance at me before turning back to the table, his back to me. I could see at the bottom of his back a damp patch on his shirt. "What are you guys doing up?" I asked, pushing the tap to allow water to go into the glass.

"Uh...we were just having a sibling chat. After Ultron...we just wanted to talk for a bit." she replied.

"Sorry for intruding." I apologised, even though I knew she was lying to me. She didn't even need the filler at the start of her sentence, I could tell. I filled my glass to the top as she spoke again from behind me.

"It's fine. We were just about to go back to sleep anyway. What are you doing up?" She asked, curiously. I wondered whether she was actually curious or whether she needed a subject change.

"I'm going to the gym." I replied.

"It's 3 in the morning." Pietro said, a little laugh escaping his throat as he did. It sounded a little tired and rough from sleep, but I liked it somehow. It was kinda raw in a sexy way.

"I'm usually up at this time." I told him, walking over and resting my hip against the side of the table. I could see Pietro's face completely now and saw a few lights drops of sweat across his face. Nightmare. Obviously, I wouldn't mention it, but it was good to know that his sister was there for him.

"It's 3 in the morning!" Wanda said, repeating what Pietro said, and I laughed as I pushed against the kitchen counter to make my way out.

"I know." I smiler shyly. I had been told off in the past for it, but I get into a cycle of waking up early. "Do you know where the gym is?" I asked and she raised her eyebrows, remembering our conversation yesterday.

"Sorry. I forgot to tell you yesterday. It's just down the hall then take your second left. Do you want me to come?" She asked out of politeness. I could tell that she didn't want to leave Pietro and, to be honest, I didn't want to take her away from him looking so fragile.

I shook my head. "Thanks Wanda, but it's fine. I'll ask JARVIS if I get lost. Goodnight you two." I smiled and left them in peace. I felt sorry for the both of them. I always saw Wanda as the weakest one if I had to decide between the two of them, but Pietro did seem like a sensitive guy, controlled by his anger more than anything else. He just tried to mask his not angry emotions. I wanted to go and hug him he looked so sad, but I knew that it wasn't my place. They were having a sibling talk together and after such a short amount after their home was destroyed, I imagined they just wanted to stay with each other and talk.

I put my drink in one of the slots on the running machine and started off with walking at a fast pace before starting into a run. I spent half an hour running. I usually do more and run outside, but I felt quite tired being introduced to everyone and we were still flying in the helicarrier so running outside might have been a bit of a problem. I enjoyed working myself hard when it comes to exercising. My favourite motto is 'Sweat is just fat crying'. I just love the anger that I can release from it, especially boxing, and the tightness in my stomach from ab work makes me feel great.

I moved onto the punchbag, which was my favourite sport. I always feel the need to keep punching, so it motivates me to keep going. Until I feel like i'm going to faint, which usually results in me punching for around an hour. I wondered how Pietro got rid of stress and whether this would help him? I made a mental note to ask him when I got the next chance to see him. I always wore wraps around my knuckles just incase to protect my knuckles, but they always seemed to get battered anyway, but I liked the pain that I felt.

After punching for what seemed like hours, I heard a knock at the door. I stopped mid-punch, my breathing even, fast and shaky, and turned round to the door, seeing Pietro there. I nearly forgot about the fact that he was near-breakdown only half an hour ago.

I let a small smile flicker on my face, one that he couldn't see from so far away. I checked my watch, noticing that I had been boxing for about half an hour, and began to walk over to the side of the walls where they kept small towels to wipe your face with. I kept my gaze on the wall, letting Pietro decide whether to ignore me or talk to me.

He sped over to me, the blue flicks of energy trailing after him, a small towel in his outstretched hand. I looked at his tired eyes that were focused solely at the floor and I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the broken man standing before me that acted so confidant only a few hours ago. I wasn't even sure whether we were going to talk about the post-nightmare situation that happened in the kitchen, but I wanted to find out what was wrong. I was worried about the arrogant Sokovian that I was currently standing in front of with a small towel...that I still hadn't taken.

Pulling myself back to the present, I reached my hand out, taking the material from his hands, my fingertips brushing the back of his hand. I accidentally (maybe slightly on purpose) left my fingers on the back of his hand a little longer than I should have, but I saw it as a friendly gesture, not one of romance.

He glanced up, my eyes drinking in his, and I didn't have the nerve to keep my fingertips touching his hand, so I pulled my hand away as soon as we locked eyes, worried that he might not like my touch as he didn't respond.

"Hey." he said, his voice soft and almost fragile, a quality that I hadn't seen in a man in my lifetime. Men had never really been 'sweet' with me. I dabbed my head with the towel and wipe off the sweat that must've been _extremely_ attractive to him.

"Hey Pietro." I replied, finishing dabbing the sweat off of my face and making my way back towards the punch-bag. Pietro surprised me by staying behind me as I walked towards it, which reminded me that he was doing what he was told for once. I was going to bring up the fact that he wasn't supposed to be speeding at all, but I felt like he wouldn't listen to me even if I did. "What brings you here so early in the morning?" I asked, dropping down the towel next to the punchbag and moving to readjust the material around my knuckles to make the pressure a little tighter.

"I am sorry." he told me with the strong accent he had, but I had already gotten used to it. I picked up my water and took a swig, the cool liquid easing my throat from the intense atmosphere between us.

"For what?" I asked. He had nothing to be sorry for. He hadn't given me an explanation for his upset, but that was personal to him. Whoever he decided to talk to was completely his choice and I believed that the only person he talked to was Wanda.

"I didn't really give you an explanation for..." he gestured to the door that lead in the direction of the kitchen. "what happened in the kitch-"

"You don't have to tell me." I assured him, putting my hands up to him. I didn't want to push him.

"We're going to be partners, yes? I can't tell you what is wrong exactly..." he said, sounding as if he was genuinely sorry that he couldn't speak with me about it. I understood that it was difficult for him to talk about and I respected that. "But I want to tell you what's been happening..."

"You know," I said, turning around to face him. I didn't realise how close that we had gotten, almost touching distance. "you really don't have to tell me what's been going on." I already knew that he had been having nightmares, but if he wanted to tell me and it was important to him, I wouldn't cut in and say that I already knew.

"I want to. If we're going to be partners, you need to know what happened last night. You are my doctor after all. You should probably know about how messed up I am." he said, a small laugh escaping his lips along with a smile. It was one of the sweetest sounds that I had ever heard and it made me want to force him to laugh again.

I smiled sadly back at him, desperately wanting to reach out my hand to comfort him. "Okay." I whispered, not needing to make my voice any louder for him to hear than that whisper.

He sighed and looked down at the floor again. "I had a nightmare." he said, clearing his throat once he had finished. I knew that he had a nightmare, he was showing all the signs in the kitchen - panic and fear.

"Have you had nightmares before?" I asked. He looked up at me and I suddenly had the crushing feeling that I sounded too much like a doctor, not a friend. "If that was too far..."

"No, it wasn't. It's fine." he said, shaking his head lightly before turning his head back to the floor. "I have had them." he said, his voice so quiet that I thought I had imagined the words, but I saw the small movements of his lips. "After...me and..." he sighed and started again.

"When I was ten..." he began, before gulping. "a bomb destroyed part of our apartment building." I heard myself gasp, but he carried on, still not looking at me. "My parents..." he began, but quickly moved on knowing that I would get the drift of what happened to them. "The...images from that stayed in my mind and I have nightmares every once in a while." he added and shuffled uncomfortably.

"How often?" I asked, cringing for sounding like a doctor again, but I didn't bother apologising.

"Once every month or so."

"Ever since you were ten?" I asked casually. I had many nightmares ever since being captured and I was always skittish around people.

"Yeah." he replied, quietly. "Last night was different and I feel a little..."

"Raw?" I asked and he nodded. _What was so interesting about the floor that he couldn't even stare at me._ "Look at me." I whispered and he lifted his head, eyes looking heavy and face looking drained. "I've been through this. The old and new nightmares I can't relate too specifically, but...nightmares have kept me up many nights. So, if you ever want to talk about it..." I said, reaching out to take his hand. He flinched a little, but accepted my hand. I was there as support, as a friend, and I think he knew that. That thought comforted me. "I'm here for you. Not just as a partner, but as a friend."

He nodded, not looking down at the floor this time. His eyes were fluttering with unshed tears. "Thank you." he whispered.

I squeezed his hand gently and let it fall out of my hand, his hand dropping back at his side. Even though holding his hand could've been seen as romantic, I hoped that he didn't get that idea as I wanted it to be seen as a friendship offering to him. "As long as you're healthy, I'm happy." I told him with a small smile.

He shook his head and laughed. "Doctors." he said, rolling his eyes and I turned back to the punchbag.

"Hey, there ain't nothing wrong with being a doctor." I told him, taking a few punches at the bag.

He came round to the side of the bag, but I didn't cease my punching. "I didn't say that." he said. _Right, right, left, right, left, left, left, right._ Boxing was my one relief and talking to Pietro as I did it was kind of...nice to do. It just made me think about how boxing might benefit him.

"Have you ever tried boxing?" I asked, speeding up a few of my punches.

He shook his head. "We didn't have that kind of thing in Sokovia. Too poor." I couldn't ever imagine being poor. Sure, I had been in bad places in my life, but being poor was something I could never relate to. I wanted to do more for the poor people in the world.

"Well don't get angry at me, but I noticed that you get angry." I said. He looked at the ground and shrugged.

"Perhaps." he murmered and I smiled, stopping the punches I was throwing at the bag.

"Come here" I said, gesturing for him to go over to the table that had a clean packet of handwraps on them. I pulled out a handwrap and took his hand, positioning the material in the right place before wrapping his hands. I didn't even look up for his reaction of me just reaching for his hand and wrapping it.

"The important thing about boxing is keeping your hands protected."

"What? Like you do? I noticed your knuckles were red earlier." he replied, nodding to my knuckles that were still wrapped up, but beneath the wrappings lay damaged skin, ripped open from the force of my punches. My hands were probably bleeding by now from all the boxing.

"I punch too hard and too often." I replied and finished up wrapping his first set of knuckles.

"Maybe you should take it easy..." he said as I got the next handwrap and took his other hand in mine. His hands were so soft and I imagined it was because of the advanced healing that his powers gave him.

"It helps me..." I said, finishing off wrapping his second hand and placing it down by his side. "I'm hoping it will help you." I replied, smiling up at him.

He showed me a small, nervous smile in response before I dragged him over to the punchbag, my mind forgetting that I had just taken his hand to pull him over. "Punching is my way of addressing my anger and I was thinking that it could help you too?"

"Seems..." he said and paused. I was worried that he would think it was a bad idea as he spoke up again. "reasonable enough. Might help." I internally sighed at his answer and positioned him in front of the punchbag, my fingers letting go of his hand.

I showed the stance his feet should be in and he held up his hands. "Like this?" he asked, putting his hands up and clenching his fists in the wrong way. His thumbs were on the inside of his clenched fists and I almost face-palmed at his idiocy, but I wanted to gain his trust, not humiliate him.

"Not exactly. Did you punch like this during the battle?" I asked, a little surprised he didn't break his hand from the method of punching.

"Yes." he said, his eyes dodging around the room guiltily like an eight-year old who had just done something naughty.

"Didn't it hurt your thumb? Maybe even break it."

"I didn't really think about it. I have advanced healing anyway." he said, shrugging his shoulders. He _really_ didn't care about his injuries at all. After dying and then being resurrected, I guessed that he had become a little careless about getting hurt. Perhaps...perhaps he had suffered so much that the pain didn't affect him as much as it used to.

"Well, I'm going to show you how to do it properly, because I don't want you coming into my office patch up your broken knuckles." I replied and he did his cute, small laugh again. I hadn't really seen him laugh, so it was a nice change.

We were just standing there, him in the correct stance and me by the punchbag not really doing anything. I nodded to his hand and asked "May I?"

He caught onto what I was talking about as he replied with "Go ahead." and held up his hands for me to mould into the perfect boxing punching shape.

"Putting your thumb on the inside of your fist is a bad idea." I put my palm on the back his right hand and used my thumb to fold his fingers into place. "And then you're going to place your thumb here..." I said and put his thumb over the front of his closed fingers. We were so close, the air between us feeling a little insufferable.

I looked into his eyes for what felt like at least a minute, but must've been no longer than a second. Maybe he didn't feel the jolt of electricity every time we touched, but I certainly did. I hadn't have a man take any interest in me since what felt like forever. I knew that he wasn't interested in me in _that_ way, which was fine. I think it was more to do with the fact that he was taking an interest in me, but I think I was getting a little over my head with it. It was just a man and we were going to be partners. That's why he was taking an interest. We were just friends, if he even called me that. He probably thought we were just acquaintances or something.

I took a gentle hold on his wrists and showed him how to hit the punch bag. He slowly got the hang of it and I let him punch the bag on his own. After a few light, slow throws he began speeding up and I saw blue energy coming off from him.

Over the course of a few seconds, all I saw was a blue blur of a figure and a few glimpses of his face in the madness. Next thing I knew, he had stopped and had one hand on his knee, sounding a little breathless, but not gasping for air. One hand was on his stomach and I immediately got nervous, ignoring the punch bag that was now across the room from the strength he had.

"Don't push yourself. I can't have you hurt." I said, my inner doctor taking over to check on him.

"Just a twinge." he said, standing up, a hand still on his side. _Ha! Like I was going to believe that._

"Let me take a look." I replied, putting my hands forward to take the bottom of his top, but he grabbed my hands quickly, blue emitting from his skin, before disappearing into the air.

"I don't need a check up." he insisted, pushing my hands away. _Why is he being so resistant. I checked him when he first came. I was his doctor._

"I'm your doctor. I _need_ to check up on you." I insisted, stepping forward, but didn't put my hands up, not wanting to be too forward.

"Don't." he said, pulling his shirt down a bit. I looked at his eyes and he was looking straight down at the floor again. _God, why couldn't he just look at my face?_ It was then that I realised that it wasn't about me, but about him. _How could I have been so stupid? He must have scars after the battle and that's why he wants to stop me from checking over him._

"Is this really just about me fixing your wounds?" I asked and he gulped. His jaw tightened and he shut his eyes. "I won't ask you take your top off. I only want to check the wound. I've done it before."

"When I was unconscious." he pointed out, his head rising to level with mine.

"You shouldn't be ashamed of what's happened to you..." I told him, trying to sound as sweet as possible. I didn't want him to feel like I was attacking him. Our partnership want dependent on a stable foundation and I didn't want to want to ruin it. He disliked the scars on his body and he didn't want anyone looking at him.

"I don't want to talk about it." he replied, voice sounding a little angry. I had wondered whether I stepped over the line, but he spoke up again. "But if you have to..." I was surprised when he took the end of his top and lifted it up slightly to show a red scar that was forming on his side. He didn't lift it any higher than the wound that was at the very bottom of his stomach.

A small hiss escaped through my teeth at the site of his injury and gestured for him to sit down on a bench at the side of the room. He sat with a grunt and I crouched next to him, fingers hovering over the wound. "Do you mind if I touch around the wound?" I asked, looking up at his face that was contorted.

"Yeah, do whatever." he responded, leaning his head against the wall.

"Tell me if you feel any pain okay?" I reminded him and started gently pressing around the wound. I could see his stomach muscles clench and tried to focus on the injury rather than his attractive eight-pack. It was inappropriate. I was his doctor for goodness sakes. It looked excruciatingly painful, but he had advanced healing, so I guessed that it was less intense for him. There was a big scratch that was surrounded by red and purple and blue. Blood was seeping out of it and I quickly ran to get a tissue before returning and pressing it against the injury.

"I won't need to stitch this up, will I." I said, not even phrasing it as a question. I knew that he had advanced healing and I could imagine him getting into escapades like this all the time.

"No, I've never needed to." he replied as I pulled back the tissue, noticing that the bleeding had slowed down.

"Well, it looks okay now. Should be alright. What about your other ones? Do you need me to take a look?" I asked and he shook his head immediately, pulling his top back down over the wound.

"The others are fine. That one was the deepest and the rest are nearly all healed over." he replied.

"No more boxing or speeding until that one is healed. Got it?" I asked and he smirked at me.

"Yes, Doc." he said, a grin lighting up his face, and stood.

"I mean it Pietro. No speeding." I warned, his infectious smile making it's way to my face too.

"Fine, no speeding. Got it." he replied and sped right over to the water. I turned my head at him and raised an eyebrow as he drunk his water. He stared weirdly at me, took the water-bottle away from his lips, and asked "What?"

I raised my eyebrows at him and gestured to where he was. His lower lip dropped in realisation. "I swear it's like walking for me." he argued, putting up his free hand.

"Well walk slower." I told him slowly.

"I'll try." he said, putting the water bottle on the side. "It's just so much easier when I use my powers."

"You think it isn't easier for me? If I get anxious then I can become invisible without even knowing it. It's become natural for us to use our powers to aid us." I thought it was a good idea to share some personal information I needed him to trust me if we were going to be partners. "Yeah, sure, my invisibility can't make me go from one side of the room to the other really fast, but when I do travel that distance I can do it without being seen." I told him. My power was useful in some ways, however, I was very jealous of his super speed. "But if I used my powers all the time, people would freak. You just need to try and act normal."

He looked like he was considering it for a moment before he shrugged. "I can try 'normal'." he said, bracketing the 'normal' with his hands.

"Good. Now, are you going back to bed?" I asked. "You probably should. We'll be arriving soon."

"D'you mind if I sit in here for a while?" he asked, sounding like the fragile man that I saw when he first entered. "I...don't really want to be alone and Wanda has gone to sleep. You don't have to talk to me." he added. "I can sit at the side and listen and I won't look at you or anything." he said, the last part sounding a little rushed. _God bless him, was he actually nervous?_

"It's fine. You can sit in the corner and do...whatever." I told him and turned back to the punchbag, raising my fists and trying to hide the blush that was growing on my face, not that I had a reason to feel...whatever this feeling was. It was only then that I realised no punchbag was there and had to call JARVIS to get me a new one. I ignored the bubble of sexual tension in my stomach and began punching the punchbag as soon as it was put into place. My tension was slowly released as I kept punching, briefly looking over Pietro every now and again to see that he wasn't really looking at me, our eyes only linking once out of all the times I looked over.

I kept punching and punching and punching, my knuckles feeling like hell, but I continued to batter the punchbag. "You'll get bruises." Pietro called out from his bench. I halted boxing for a moment before returning to the punches.

"I know." I told him truthfully. "Already got enough of 'em"

"Then why keep going?" he asked.

"Once you start, it's difficult to stop. Boxing is practically a drug to me." I replied, smirking and throwing a more difficult punch at the bag with a quiet grunt escaping my lips.

"So you're addicted?" he asked and I saw him begin to walk towards me slowly, hands in his pockets.

"In a way, yes. But it's healthier than being on crack." I replied. He chuckled and I had to stop punching completely at that, my arms suddenly losing their energy and my heart pumping a little faster against my chest.

"Will you come to rehab for a second?" he asked, extending his hand to me and I turned my head at him in curiosity. "Come on..." he said, rolling his eyes. "I'm not going to hurt you."

He raised his eyebrows and extended his hand a little further. I took a moment to think about what he was doing, but decided to go with it. To trust him. I accepted his hand and let him pull me forward. "Now, lie on the floor." he said and I furrowed my eyebrows.

"What?" I asked. He sounded a little crazy. What were we going to do on the floor? Oh did my mind wander...

"Like this. You know how to lie down, yes?" he asked, laughing as he lied down on the floor, letting go of my hand. He tapped the space next to him and I knelt down the floor and lay next to him, looking up at the ceiling. I could hear his breath next to me and my breaths sounded much quicker than his because of the boxing I had been doing prior.

"What are we doing down here?" I asked. I actually felt quite relaxed. I let the energy from my body sink into the floor and my face felt like it was going to melt into the floor.

"Me and Wanda used to do this before we were experimented on and in our cells. We used to stare up at the ceiling and think about how we could leave Sokovia." I turned my head and noticed that his eyes were closed, taking himself back to the memories of his past. He opened his eyes again and continued. "We didn't have much money, so we couldn't leave. I sold scraps of clothing, food, whatever I could, for the biggest price I could get, not letting Wanda near the business unless she got in trouble. But life is tough, no? We would never be able to get enough money, so we just looked up at the ceiling and dreamed. We used to call them floor talks."

"Floor talks. I like it." I replied and smiled up at the blank ceiling, which seemed a little more than a blank ceiling in my mind.

"It got us through the days locked up in the HYDRA base. We were too...scared to leave, so whenever we could see each other we had floor talks."

"It must've been really hard for you." I said. I considered placing my hand over his and squeezing it, but decided against it thinking that he might not appreciate me holding his hands all the time.

"We got through it." he replied, stoically, and then let out a soft sigh. "Wanda wasn't the same after we escaped. I hope that I can make her better."

"That isn't your job you know..." I said and he turned his head to look at me. "She may be your sister, but it isn't your complete responsibility to look after her. We all know you'll be there for her, but she probably just needs time."

He took a moment, looking confused at me, before his face relaxed and he nodded. He turned his face back to the ceiling and shut his eyes. I couldn't tell whether he wanted to blank me or whether he was reflecting on memories, but I knew that he wouldn't want a pair of eyes staring at him, so I looked back at the ceiling too.

I felt his hands stroke the back of mine lightly, most likely by accident, and shivered as he did. Bolts of electricity struck through my body again, making me shift my body a little. Maybe he had minature Thors living in his fingers? _How did I even get to thinking about this? My mind is so weird._

I then noticed the ceiling colour. The ceiling was a grey colour with a few bright, but not blinding lights on. It reminded me of the S.H.I.E.L.D training facilities, which actually brought me a sense of comfort. They always had pristine, clean buildings that made the place seem almost clinical, but it was what I had gotten used to over the course of the past decade. It reminded me of a safe place.

We lied there for about half an hour, in complete silence. It didn't seem awkward and actually felt natural. Floor talks actually seemed like quite a good way to bond, even if you weren't talking. "You want to get some breakfast, _Lilyska?_ "

"Lilyska? What does that mean?" I asked, curiously as he stood and held out his hand to pull me up, a smile pulled across his face.

"I'll just keep you guessing." he replied and pulled me up to a standing position. I smiled at him as I stood before I unwrapped my hands and grabbing my water, heading out of the door with the Sokovian to the kitchen.

"Do they have any eggs?" I asked and he looked at me shocked as he searched through the fridge. It hadn't taken us that long to go from the training room to the kitchen, a time which we filled with a conversation about how we both couldn't feel the vibrations of the plane. However, Pietro said he could in speed mode and I guessed that it must've had something to do with him slowing down the sounds or something.

"Eggs?" he asked, sounding disheartened at my question.

"Hey, what's wrong with eggs?" I asked defensively, taking a seat at one of the stools that was tucked underneath a high coffee table in the centre of the kitchen. It was a pretty nice kitchen for a helicarrier, kitted with a microwave, an oven and even a washing machine.

"Nothing is _wrong_ with eggs. I just didn't realise that you were that boring." he said, simply, shutting the fridge door to search through the other cupboards.

"I am not boring." I insisted, scowling at him. "Omelettes are good."

"Omelettes taste odd to me." he complained, pulling a disgusted face as his eyes scanned the shelves.

"Well eggs don't just make omelettes you know." I told him, sipping some of my drink as he went to the next cupboard.

"Scrambled eggs are too messy, poached eggs are too boring, fried eggs are really oily and I already told you about omelettes." he argued.

"Didn't realise you were such a fussy eater." I said, smirking at his complaining about eggs.

"I prefer the word selective." he said with a shrug, pulling a bunch of stuff out of the cupboard. I laughed at his response. I rose in my seat and walked to sit on top of the counter beside him, curious as to what he was doing.

"What are you making? Is that an egg?" I asked, using a dramatic tone when asking about the egg. I peered over at the ingredients he was using. Eggs, caster sugar, milk. I recognised the ingredients.

"Pancakes. The ultimate food. That okay with you for breakfast?" he asked, not realising what he had even done. Unknown to him, pancakes were one of my favourite foods. Spinach and ricotta pasta and gingerbread came in close seconds, but nothing beats pancakes. I used to bake them with my parents as kids. It was one of my only ties to them and him cooking them up almost made tears come to my eyes. Instead of giving him a long spiel about my childhood and how pancakes were my favourite food, I smiled to him and gave him a normal response.

"Pancakes are fine."

 **Hey guys :) Hope you liked this chapter. I thought it was a cute bonding session for them to get to know each other. The next chapter will be them arriving at the facility and getting settled in. More moments with Pietro to come.**

 **Reminder that I am considering switching this to M rated at some point, so can you give me a review with your opinion on it please? Thank you!** **And make sure to review!** **I really appreciate the support at the minute as I am in the middle of exams! Next thursday I should be back to my normal routine of knocking out chapters more often. Please point out any errors in this if you can as I haven't had long to check. Thank you! Also, what are your favourite foods, because that list is true to my heart, apart from the pancakes. Gingerbred, then spincach and ricotta pasta and then butternut squash soup :P**

 **Please review! Thank you for all the people that are following :)**


	5. UPDATE!

So I know there have been a lot of updates flying around, but this one is really important.

OH and thank you for following and reviewing this story it's been amazing.

I am doing four different stories all linked in with each other. That's right. It's ridiculously crazy. We have four couples - Steve and Maria, Pietro and this OC, Nat and Clint and Sam and the assistant. I really hope you go ahead and follow those too, because all the stories will be intertwined. Obviously you can read them separately, but where's the fun in that? :P

I will be uploading the starter chapters for each of the stories over the next few days, which is why this is going on hold for a moment as the other stories are being published as I will be publishing a chapter for each story each week, all the chapters in sync with each other. That way you can chose which ever couple you want to read first.

Good idea? Someone suggested that I do them all on the same storyline and I thought it was a great idea. Sorry for halting this story for a bit, but please don't unfollow as I will be back. Follow my author's page for the updates on the other stories. Thank you!

 **INTERTWINING STORIES IS SO FUN, YET THE MOST DIFFICULT CHALLENGE I WILL EVER HAVE, SO PLEASE SUPPORT ME AND REVIEW THE STORIES.**

Clintasha's story - The Two Assassins - is 10,186 words and the Falcon one - The Avenger's Falcon - is 12,808. **THOSE ARE THE FIRST CHAPTERS!**

 **This is going to be so tough, so please please review when you can. Thank you, you amazing supporters! I have BIG plans ahead for many MANY chapters!**


	6. Shawshank

**Thank you for the reviews, even on my last update about how the story is going. I cannot tell you how sorry I am that I haven't updated. I've been trying to get all the other stories done too, so that they can be running at the same time! It's been a long while and I felt like I owed you a chapter, so here is your next filler chapter of Pietro and Riley.**

 **WARNING: Mentions of rape and violence**

"Golden syrup?" he asked, flipping the cooked pancake perfectly onto the plate he was holding in his left hand.

"How could I not?" I replied and looked around the room. I had suddenly realised that I had no idea what was actually in all of the kitchen cupboard. My curious side took over and I hopped off my stool to go and investigate. I started at the side of the room, near the fridge and had to kneel on top of the counter to reach the handle. As I opened the door, I crouched down quickly, only just missing it hit me. I peered over the food, reminding myself of a meerkat and found that the foods were arrange into lines. I didn't understand why such organisation was put into something as simple as food. _Would I be able to still buy my own food when we got to the tower and I became an Avenger? Would I even be allowed to leave? Would I have to order stuff in?_ I liked shopping for my own food, so it would be a disappointment if I couldn't leave. _Surely the Avengers can't be kept like prisoners, not allowed to go shopping. Would I have to wear a disguise if I went into the city?_

I had been staring into the cupboard for so long, my thoughts racing through my mind like usual, that I didn't realise that food was on the table already, an confused Pietro waiting for me to sit down. "What are you doing?" he asked and I flicked my head to look at him. In this light, he looked more tired than he did in the training room, his eyes having a more hollow appearance.

"I was just looking through the cupboards. I haven't had the chance yet and then my mind went off on a whole different tangent of it's own, wondering whether I would still be able to buy my own food. Have they told you about that yet? I mean, do we have to order stuff in or do we have to do our own shopping, because I quite like doing my own shopping. Do we have to wear disguising if we do our shopping? If so, I am picking out my disguise and..." I trailed off when I saw Pietro's face raise into a smirk and I realised that I had been speaking at a million miles an hour. If I couldn't get something off my mind, then I did that. I got nervous and started talking like there was no tomorrow. "Sorry, I could definitely talk to save my life." I said, feeling embarrassed as I took the seat next to him where my un-eaten pancakes were. He had made himself a bigger stack than me, but I knew that he needed it for his metabolism. I felt my cheeks flare up as I picked up my knife and fork, digging into the pancake stack. Thankfully, my hair hid the redness of my face.

"It's fine." he replied, shrugging as he reached for more golden syrup to put on his pancakes. I took my first bite and it felt like heaven. I wasn't sure whether it was the fact it was about 4 in the morning or if the pancakes were actually good. I never had pancakes in the morning, even though they were my favourite food. Usually, I had a protein bar or porridge or something like that. Hopefully, I would be able to give up everything that I had before the Avengers. The golden syrup on the pancakes was awakening my taste buds and I bit back a moan as I swallowed the pancake.

"I like the rambling. Wanda's too quiet sometimes." he admitted, putting his last piece of food in his mouth. I tried not to take too much offense at the word 'rambling'. "It's not that I don't enjoy her company, because I do, especially since I've been back." I had been trying to analyse how he had been after his 'death', but I struggled to do so, because I didn't know what he was like before.

"Have you been spending a lot of time with her?" I asked, taking another bite of the pancake. I wasn't hungry, but I was enjoying the early morning feast we were having. I would have to have pancakes for breakfast again at some point.

"I talked with her last night for a while before she fell asleep. She practically fell asleep mid-sentence." he said and I chuckled quietly, but ended up choking on a pancake I'd just attempted to eat.

I heard a whoosh, a blue-ish light filling the room, and I knew Pietro had used his speed. Idiot. I cursed him in my brain as I heard the water run before he came next to me, a glass of water in his hand. "I-" I tried to tell him off, but ended up coughing again. He practically shoved the water into my hand, but I took it gratefully and gulped it down, the irritation in my throat soothing as I did. I drank my way through the whole glass, my body craving the water, and took the glass away from my lips when I finished, taking a large gasp of air. I cleared my throat and roughly put the glass back on the table, looking over at Pietro who had his head down, fighting back a grin. "It's not funny." I said, hitting him lightly on the arm, but it made him smirk more.

"If you wanted to feel me up, you could've just asked." he said, lifting his arm up and flexing it. I rolled my eyes, my heart thumping in my chest, but I ignored it, going back to why I was originally angry at him.

"Stop speeding!" I scolded, my anger boiling in my blood, but he just laughed again. "I'm being serious." I said, getting up from my seat to stand facing him. I did it to try and show him that I was really upset with him. It worked - his grin dropped. It didn't do anything to sooth the clenching feeling in my chest. "Stop showing off and think about what you're doing to yourself. Do you seriously want your injury to get worse?" I was getting very annoyed with the Sokovian, no matter how handsome he was. My emotions were a complete shit storm usually and this was no exception. Whenever I got angry or sad, my powers would be unpredictable. They would take over me and cause my visibility to change. I tried to fight the irritated feeling building in my body, but I felt my hands begin to shake. I was only reacting because I cared about him. However, after being with him for under twenty four hours, I was already prepared to punch him, not that I would. He was tempting me though. He didn't listen to any instruction that I gave him, even if it was for his own good. His eyes were darting all over my body, focusing on different parts as I clenched my fists. I looked down at myself and noticed that parts of me were turning from visible to invisible. _Shit._

"Woah. Just calm down, okay?" he said, holding up his hands as if I were a threat. I wasn't a threat to him or any of the Avengers, but maybe my power was a bit much for them to handle. Invisibility is quite a big deal, however, so is a God. People seemed to have gotten used to the Avengers and the abilities they all possessed. I had seen all the different Avengers in a few shop windows, Pepper and Maria being included in the merchandise too. I told myself to focus and think about something else other than getting frustrated with Pietro. I shut my eyes and tried to block out the heart beat that I could hear all the way in my ears, making it hard to focus. I could only hear my heartbeat now, Pietro's voice fading into the background. The invisible sections of skin felt like hot patches and I could feel it nearly taking over my entire body.

Suddenly, someone touched my hands. My body jolted slightly, like electricity had been shot through it. I hadn't expected the interaction, but it had seemed to help sooth me. The hands were soft and warm, curling around my clenched fists and linking them with my fingers. I tried to calm my breathing as I gripped the pair of hands, letting my heart beat go slower and slower. The intimacy seemed to ground me back to Earth and bring me down a few notches from my angry state. I felt so vulnerable. _In through the nose, out through the mouth._ Once my breathing was back to normal and my heartbeat was nearly at it's usual rhythm, I opened my eyes and saw Pietro standing there, his hands linked with mine. He looked overly concerned about me, but I knew it wasn't personal. He would be concerned about anyone, because he was that type of person - kind.

"Are you okay now?" he asked, stroking his thumb across my sensitive skin. I let out a shaky breath and nodded as I forced myself not to cry.

"I'm fine." I replied, smiling quickly to hide my anxiety. "My powers are controlled by my emotions, so if I get angry or stressed-"

"You go invisible?" he guessed and I nodded, pressing my lips together.

"Exactly. It's difficult to say the least." I sat back in my seat as I sighed and let my hands fall away from his warm ones. I was calm now and didn't need his help anymore, but holding his hands was a nice comfort to me. "Do you have that problem at all or is it just me with the issue?"

"Well, I don't have it that severely," I could tell that by 'that severely' he meant panic attack, but I appreciated that he didn't bring it up. "but Wanda does. If you ever get worried about it, you might be able to speak to her. I'm sure she wouldn't have a problem talking it through with you." he suggested and I smiled at the idea. Wanda seemed like a considerate, loyal person, much like Pietro, but she came across as a little less angry and more sensitive. I noticed that she wasn't as confident as her brother was with the other Avengers, but I could see potential for us to be friends. I hoped in the future that we would be. She was a sweet girl from what I could see.

"I'll keep that in mind." I sipped my drink, the cold glass against my palm and the water running down my throat calming my nerves. We fell into silence.

I was going to ask if he was tired yet, and if so tell him to go to sleep, but he spoke up. "Do you wanna watch a movie...or something?" The question was tentative. He probably thought that I would scream at him if I disagreed after shouting at him no less than a minute ago.

"Umm..." _I should go to sleep. I should definitely go to sleep._ Part of me wanted to stay up and watch movies with Pietro though. I hadn't gotten to know him overly well and if we were going to be partners, then I should probably do that. I convinced myself that it was a good idea and replied "Sure, what do you wanna watch?"

I saw his shoulders relax a little and we slowly made our way into the living room. "I haven't seen many American movies, all of mine being from our country usually." he said, crinkling his nose.

"Not good?" I asked and he shook his head, eyes wide.

"Not good." he confirmed, and leapt over the side of the couch, plopping himself onto a comfortable cushion. I probably should've warned him not to hurt himself more, but I thought that I had told him off enough for one day. At least he wasn't using his powers anymore.

We ended up watching Shawshank Redemption after Pietro said that he had never seen it, which was practically a crime. We filled up two glasses with water and then went on the search for food. There didn't seem to be any popcorn in the cabinets, so we stole the chocolate biscuit packet on the very top shelf. The food was there for everyone

"Bourbons." I grinned and gleefully opened the packet, pouring the contents into a bowl for us. Pietro looked at the bowl suspiciously and I raised my eyebrows at him. "Never had one?" I asked, surprised. Bourbons were my favourite biscuits, closely followed by jammy dodgers and custard creams. I thought bourbons were quite popular, but perhaps they weren't in Sokovia.

He shook his head. "They are chocolate, yes?" I nodded and held one out for him. Our fingertips brushed lightly as he took it out of my hands and I suppressed the shiver that threatened to crawl down my spine.

"Chocolate biscuits on the outside with a chocolate filling. Pure bliss." I said, observing him as he cautiously took a bite. He was like a child taking it's first bite of candy - I knew he would be hooked. He closed his eyes and hummed at he chewed the biscuit in his mouth and I chuckled at him as he opened his eyes.

"That is amazing." He said and reached out to get another one, but I took the bowl from his reach, picking up the glasses too, which made a quiet clinking sound when they touched.

"Movie first." I told him, feeling a little like his carer. He scowled at me and started coming towards me, but within the space of a second, I turned invisible and he stopped walking. I found it odd using

"That's cheating." He smirked and shook his head at me as I walked towards the living room. "You're impossible."

"Speak for yourself." I told him and his head quickly looked over in my direction, though not directly at me.

"You really are incredible." He said, fascinated and I stood in the doorway for a second longer, staring at his face in awe of my abilities. I blushed, not that he knew. He was truly mystified by my talent and I smiled at his impressed facial expression. Once I realised that I was being a bit weird, I shook myself, walked to the television and turned it on once I managed to hold the glasses and drinks in one arm, the Stark logo coming up on the screen. His head poked out of the kitchen door and he furrowed his eyebrows at the sight of the television. "And a bit creepy."

"Hey!" I scolded and reappeared, so that he could see me again. I placed the glasses and the bowl on the table before placing my hands on my hips defiantly. I saw him flinch slightly when I became visible, but quickly relaxed. "I'm not that creepy." I hoped that he didn't see my red cheeks, but knowing my luck he probably did.

"You turn invisible." he deadpanned, walking up to the sofa that I was standing by. He struck me as a very casual guy, caring a lot, but not showing it too much. I imagined him being much more affectionate with Wanda, the pair of siblings obviously very close, Wanda's reaction to Pietro's near death experience showing just she loved him. They only had each other, so it wasn't really a suprirse.

"You have super speed." I argued as he jumped over the couch. I sat next to him, relaxing against the soft, comfortable cushions lining the sofa. I was surprised, because the leather didn't look very comfortable.

"Having super speed makes me cool, not creepy." He smirked and I rolled my eyes, searching for Shawshank Redemption on the movie list. It was my favourite movie - the character's each having their own little world. I often found myself thinking of Andy and his journey through life, sometime relating to him in his trapped prison state, hoping that one day I would be free like he became. Perhaps I loved it a little too much.

"Having super speed makes you cocky." I retorted and I could feel his playful scowl through the back of my head.

"So...can I start with the deep questions yet? Like what your favourite colour is?" he asked and I chuckled at his charm. Pietro was a flirt, but he was fun to be around.

"No, that's way too personal." I joked and he laughed too. "Blue, definitely blue." I answered honestly.

"Like my eyes?" He asked, blinking as he turned his head in a model like fashion. It was then that I noticed just how blue his eyes were. When he woke up in the hospital yesterday, I hadn't taken them into account properly. I could now see the boldness in them and they seemed to stand out against the rest of his face.

I shoved his arms. "Yes, Pietro, like your eyes. Now, what about your favourite colour?" I asked, pressing play on the remote control. We chatted for a while, answering each other's simple questions, getting onto the subject of music eventually.

"Do you play any instruments then?" He asked and I shook my head.

"I don't play anything." I said, slight regret in my voice. I did always want to pick up an instrument, but I never found the time or money to start learning. I remember painful lessons in primary school where it was compulsory to play the recorder. Complete torture. He reached towards his drink, took a few gulps before placing it back down on the table.

"Are you a singer?" He asked, sitting further towards me once he placed his drink on the table.

"Well, I...did in the past, but I haven't in ages." I replied as I thought of a subject that I could subtly change the conversation to.

"Have you done much with your voice?" I raised an eyebrow at his question that seemed confusing to me.

"Have I done much?" I asked, wondering what he meant.

"Talent shows, all that American stuff." He said, waving his hands in the air.

"They show American shows in Sokovia?" I asked and immediately winced as I realised I referred to Sokovia in the present tense. I should've made more of an effort to watch my words. Pietro didn't seem to be phased by it.

"Not exactly. When me and Wanda were on the run a few days ago, we saw some big TVs in a shop window. They were showing a programme...Talented America or something?" He guessed and I tried not to laugh at the incorrect title.

"America's got talent?" I asked and he nodded, not looking embarrassed by messing upt he title. That was the thing with Pietro - he never got embarrassed or flustered, which was annoying, because he was a flirt and all I needed was a man to wink at me to get flustered.

"We had televisions in Sokovia, but me and Wanda didn't really watch much of it and in...while we were captive by HYDRA, they didn't prohibit that kind of stuff." He said, looking down at the floor at that last part. I cursed myself again. Why does everything usually lead to us talking about his time during the experiments.

"I don't do talent shows. I'm not in college." I smirked at him.

"Well has anyone heard you sing?" He asked and suddenly my mind snapped.

 **FLASHBACK TO RED ROOM**

 _I turned my head hearing someone from beside me whisper something. It was dark, only a small light outside going me vision, but I knew the room I was in by now, not inch by inch, but pretty well. I knew that next to my bed, if you could call it that, was a spare change of clothes that I would wear tomorrow. I had on night dresses that I was wearing and then two sets of workout clothes, one of which was in the wash. At least they had the decency to wash the clothes I wore each day. There were two of us in each cell at the prison. Dot was standing next to me._

 _"Riley..." She whispered, clutching her hands together at the chest. She looked scared. She wasn't there when I fell asleep, the guards taking her to do some testing. I thought she would be fine. Evidently not. From what I could see in the little light, the sweet girl had been crying, red blotches under her eyes. Her ragged breath echoed in the cell, which I doubted the girls in the other cells could hear, but I wasn't going to take any chances._

 _"You can't cry, Dot." I had chosen the nickname for her when we were shoved in a cell together two weeks ago, at least I thought it was two weeks ago. I couldn't really tell, as I didn't have a clock or a calendar to keep track of the days passing. I had counted that the guards had woken us up fourteen times after what felt like endless days in a prison. I still had no idea where I was, but it was cold with no windows, so I guessed that it was under the ground._

 _Dot was one of the shyer girls and much younger than the rest of the prisoners. Lots of the girls were my age, but Dot was thirteen or fourteen. Our arms were both covered in tiny circles from where out blood had been taken. As well as that, we had been out through many physical test that completely exhausted me each night. The food was small and in tasteful, but I noticed a lot of protein being put into the meals. I heard rumours that they were training us up for some kind of secret service operation, but is had enough sense to see that it was false hope. Whenever one of is asked why we were at the prison, we were either slapped across the face, punched in the stomach or some other form of physical punishment. One girl was extremely persistent and was dragged out of training two days ago, screaming her lungs out, demanding to be told why she was there, as she was pulled out by the guards. I didn't see her again after that. No one asked questions after that._

 _"I'm s-sorry." She trembled, rubbing her cheeks. There was something wrong, but I could see what her face was telling me. What had happened I her? "They...they h-hurt me." Her quiet, fragile vice admitted, placing one of her hands over her stomach. It was then that I noticed the patch of blood on her white dress below where she was holding her hands._

 _"Dot, did they..." I swallowed the rising emotions building up in my dry throat that was making me want to cry out. I finished my question, not that I wanted to. "Did they rape you?" I kept my voice controlled, only just managing to ask the question. Her face contorted uncomfortably and she shut her eyes, hanging her head. "Oh Dot." I whispered, reaching out desperately to pull her close to me. I delicately placed her on my lap as I weaved my hand through her tangled hair, like a mother would with her child. I didn't care about her blood that was surely staining my night dress. I whispered reassuringly that it was okay and everything was going to be fine, but I was fighting down the mixture of fear and hatred boiling within me._

 _I hated them. I hated the group that had captured us, even more than before. Dot couldn't have started an argument with the guards, she was too frightened to do that. The thought of them touching her sent a sick feeling to my stomach and I held her closer to me. I was trying not to show that I was scared too, to show that I was strong. But I was scared. I was scared the same thing would happen to me. We stayed seated on my bed for at least ten minutes, I didn't know without a clock, before she slipped away from me and lay down on her own bed. Determined to stop her blaming herself, I walked over and knelt down, reaching up to place my hand on her sweat covered forehead. She was shaking, so I pulled up the thin cover we were given, hoping it would help calm her. Quickly, I grabbed my cover and put it over her too. She was too distraught to even notice._

 _"Hey Dottie?" I called quietly. She slowly turned to look at me, tears streaming down her face. She was too innocent for all this. "You know this wasn't your fault, right?"_

 _"I must...must've d-done some...t-thing..." She sniffles and I shook my head._

 _"Those men hurt you in the worst way possible and that is unforgivable. Don't think for one second that you deserved this or that it was your fault, okay?" I asked, but she just pursed her shaking lips together. "Okay" I asked again and she eventually nodded before going a small smile at me. I admired her for being so strong._

 _"Would you...s-sing to me?" She asked with a hopeful look on her face. "I hear you humming a tune t-to yourself sometimes. I don't know what it is...but it's beautiful." I debated it in my head for a minute, wondering whether it was a good idea or not. The risk of the other girls waking up was possible and that was something I didn't want to guards hearing would be worse, but they usually left us alone at night. I looked at her face - blood shot eyes and a wobbling lower lip - and decided that I would sing to her, but quietly._

 _I shuffled down next to her and pulled her to me, continuing to stroke her hair as she laid her head against my collarbone, tears dropping onto my skin. My mother sang it to me as a child. I began to sing Moon River to her, softly and quietly. That was the last time I sang._ _My voice was quiet, some of the words inaudible from trying not to be heard by anyone else. The guards would beat us and the girls might tease us._

 _I had grown quite attached to Dot over the past two weeks, feeling more like her sister and friend than her cell mate. I was attached to her, which probably wasn't a good idea. I missed my old life where all I had to worry about was university and finding a boyfriend._ _I spent the rest of the night rocking her to sleep, unaware that I would spend the next night in the men's quarters rather than in my prison cell with Dot._

 _That was the last time I sang in that prison. That night I was completely unaware that I would spend the next night in the men's quarters, rather than with the comfort of Dot. That was the day that I gave up hope. I gave up my hope to HYDRA._

"No one special." I told him and looked back at the screen as the movie began.

 **I am soooo sorry that I haven't updated in ages, I've been trying to finish the chapters for my other stories, which I am going to post tonight or tomorrow. Thank you so much for waiting and please review! Also, if I've made any mistakes, make sure to point them out. Thank you :)**


	7. Responsibility

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 **Howling2themoon: I'm so sorry that I haven't updated in ages. I hope you like this chapter and please keep reviewing. Thank you for sticking with me. :)**

 **Anonymous: Whoever you are, thank you for your kind words! I really hope you stay with me for this story, because I have an entire plot worked out!**

 **THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT! It's been a difficult time recently, so i just wanted to say thank you for all the reviews. They really do encourage me to write quicker and publish them quicker, so thank you! I really needed the time off to focus on my mental health, but I think that is sorted now. Enjoy the chapter and MERRY CHRISTMAS!**

 **I SAID I WOULD POST IT ON CHRISTMAS DAY AND I HAVE ONE MINUTE LEFT! BOOM!**

Throughout the movie, we spoke occasionally bringing up stuff about the story. Pietro called me a geek when I pointed out the parts that were crucial to the movie and explain how Andy outsmarted every person in the prison in order to escape. I cried during the hanging scene, saying how it was so unfair that Brookes had been released into a world that he didn't know anymore after being in prison for 30 years. New cars, new buildings, new everything. It reminded me of Steve a lot, being thrown into a world that he didn't know anymore. I admired Steve a lot for managing to cope with the modern world.

I didn't tell Pietro that I had downloaded the Shawshank Redemption soundtrack and listened to it about once every month. The music was amazing. Pietro offered me his shoulder to cry on, a growing smirk stretched across face, but I shoved him playfully and he laughed at me. I was glad for the low lighting that hid my red cheeks.

"I didn't even ask, do you play any instruments?" I asked when the movie had finished, the question still toying on my mind. I took the remote and pressed the off button, watching the television fold into the table it was placed on. I pushed myself off the sofa and picked up the glasses, Pietro picking up the empty bowl before I could. Pietro are most of the bourbons that were in the bowl, claiming that they were his new, favourite biscuits.

"I play guitar sometimes, but haven't in a while." He said, shrugging. I very easily imagined Pietro playing guitar in Sokovia, girls flocking around him, dreamily staring up at him as he asked them. Then afterwards he would ask them for their money and their numbers. I smirked in my head at the image, Wanda disapprovingly shaking her head behind the crowd of women.

"Do you sing too?" I asked and he shrugged again.

"I try." He said, probably being modest, something that I hadn't really seen Pietro be. "I used to play to Wanda sometimes whenever she had a nightmare or got scared." Wanda seemed to be frightened, of herself mainly, but also strong. It was a weird character combination, but it suited her somehow. I liked being in her company. Hopefully, we would be friends, because I didn't have...well anyway. Unless Pietro counted. We had been talking for a long time now, but I didn't seem to be tired. It was ridiculous-o-clock, but I wasn't trying to concentrate on that. We were having a nice time talking to each other.

He was quite easy to talk to, though he could be a little cheeky sometimes. God knows what training was going to be like. Being paired with any one of them scared me. I think I would like to have either Pietro or Wanda, because I both seemed to get along with them well. I didn't really know Sam or James, so I think it would be a little awkward jumping into training with two people that I hadn't spoken to before. Don't get me wrong, they seemed nice and friendly, but meeting new people wasn't my forte.

In hospitals, you knew everyone, their medical background, name, history. It was all already done for you and you had to talk to them on a professional basis, whereas, casual talking sometimes made me get into awkward situations. With Pietro, it seemed to be going well. Don't get me wrong, it's not like I can't stick up for myself, I do have a spine. I am taking me mouthing off at Stark earlier as a good thing...I saw it in that light anyway. Hopefully everybody else did too.

I think working with Vision would be difficult. He has that...gem thing stuck in his head that I saw Wanda giving a few glances to. Them being paired together might be a good idea, because they are both quite...odd. I don't mean that in a patronising or rude way, but they don't seem entirely...normal. If I told Pietro that, then he might actually kill me for insulting his sister, so I decided to keep my thoughts to myself and not tell him anything about my opinions of the witch and the android.

That would mean that me and Pietro would be paired together. I had surprisingly taken a liking to him in the past hour or so, mainly because we've had no one else to talk to. I could've excused myself and sat in my room by myself, but...I hadn't even thought about leaving him. I enjoyed his company, which would make us a good team if we were put together. I already knew loads about him and we hadn't even spoken to each other that long. I didn't have many boys who were friends, but perhaps this could be a start. Maybe even more than friends?

 _Woah, moving way too quickly there!_ He probably didn't even consider me a friend in his mind, let alone more than that. I flushed at my stupid mind playing tricks and asked him "You ever play publicly?" trying to distract myself from my thoughts and move away from the subject of bad dreams. I didn't need a darker topic being brought up again.

"No, it was something that me and Wanda shared together." he replied, tapping the bowl with his fingertips. I couldn't tell whether he was impatient or just bored with me. I guessed the second one. He seemed to be focused and distracted at the same time, which didn't really make sense. Then again, he didn't make sense to me sometimes.

"You and Wanda? Does she sing too?" I imagined Wanda being a super talented singer with a powerful voice that brought people to tears.

Pietro looked at me, an amused look on his face. "Wanda can't sing at all." Perhaps not such a powerful voice then. "She tried to get into the choir once - she was politely asked to leave after two weeks" he said, trying to contain his laugh. I glared at him for being nasty about his sister and he put his hands up, laughing still. "Wanda is amazing, don't get me wrong, just listen to my advice and never ask her to sing. She can play guitar, just a few chords though. We didn't have money for lessons in Sokovia."

"I remember being in primary school and being forced to play the recorder, but that was about it." Pietro laughed at that as he put the bowl in the sink and began running the water. I put the glasses in the sink and started searching for a tea towel.

As I picked up a grey towel, I looked up and noticed Pietro looking off into the distance. I walked back over and smiled when he snapped out of his daze, shaking his head. "Sorry, it reminded me of...when me and Wanda were kids and I had to look after her. She really wanted to play recorder as a child actually." Now I felt really bad. There I was sounding like a spoilt brat who said that they were forced to play a musical instrument, whereas Pietro and his sister didn't have that luxury. How could I be so inconsiderate of that? _Good going, Riley!_

"You had to look after her by yourself? No relatives or anything?" I asked and he shook his head, beginning to wash up the glasses. I tried to imagine a younger Pietro, small scratches on his face and mud across his clothes. The sad thing was, I could picture it easily. Wanda would probably be cowering behind him slightly, I could imagine her being a little scared of the world when she was a child. Poor Maximoffs having to go through all that. He probably didn't want me feeling sorry for him, but I did.

"We didn't have any family and the social service wasn't good. We were adopted for a while, but after we turned sixteen, we took off on our own." He explained. I could see on his face that he struggled with the language, so any time he said something wrong, I never corrected him. I think I heard him say things incorrectly a few times, but nothing noticeable. His pronunciation and word formation was pretty good. I felt bad for him though. I couldn't believe Pietro and Wanda only relied on each other for help, more Wanda relying on Pietro than the other way around. It must've been so difficult for them and a lot of pressure on him. I could tell Pietro was the older sibling, probably taking too much control of Wanda at some points.

"You gave yourself the role of parent?" I asked knowingly, drying the last glass before moving onto the bowl. Pietro pushed himself onto the table and crossed his legs, sitting leisurely where plates and cutlery would. Like him, I didn't care about that sort of thing, because you don't eat food off of the table like people insist that you do. You eat food on a plate that is placed on the table, so technically, it's perfectly fine to sit on the table.

"Bad things used happen to the women in Sokovia sometimes. I couldn't let Wanda be exposed to that." he said, a grave expression crossing his face, making him look a little shadier than usual. I could tell he thought it was his 'duty' to protect her and keep her safe, but, at some point, Wanda would need to grow up. I could sense that she liked being an individual and having her own space sometimes, but having Pietro around constantly couldn't be good for her. In the future, she would rebel. The thought of any woman being raped disgusted me, but I felt my nerves jolt at the thought of Wanda being raped. It wasn't something that I wanted to think about at all. It must've been much worse for Pietro. "That's why I had to stay strong, mentally and physically, to fight for us."

"You had to fight?" I asked, a little shocked that he would need to actually fight to keep her safe. Pietro looked more than capable of having a fight with someone, but I could see that he was kind. On the other hand, he was a hot-head. They didn't call him Quicksilver for nothing. Quick on his feet, quick with his temper. Having an argument with him must've been difficult, not only because he would flare up quickly, but if he didn't want to talk, he could just speed off into the distance. I guess that was a burden his parents didn't need to deal with...when they were alive.

"Not all people were as trustworthy as others. Fights happened between me and other Sokovians if I felt they were a threat to me or Wanda." I didn't have any type of threat shown to me as a child, which was why I found it so difficult to relate with him. He had a completely different lifestyle. With every new topic, I would find out something new about him. He was such a mystery and I was hooked. I was unsure as to whether it was a good or bad thing. When I got attached to something, I really got attached. In some way, I hoped it wasn't the same with Pietro.

"At sixteen?" He nodded. "Did you win?" He scoffed and gave me a look that made me question how arrogant he really was. Pietro seemed like the type to joke that he was amazing, but actually have a disapproving opinion of himself. I hope he didn't have that view of himself, because...he was actually a pretty nice guy.

"Are you kidding? Of course..." I looked at him disbelievingly - sixteen doesn't mean invincible - so he dropped the facade, telling me the truth. "The first few times, I had a few bruises. Once I...had my hand broken."

"Oh Pietro..." I said, trying not to look at him sympathetically as I stepped closer. I think I failed. I reached my hand out and gently took his warm fingers in mine. I was worried for a moment, wondering why they were so hot, but then remembered that his powers allowed him to be warmer. My hands must've been freezing compared to his. His fingers flinched slightly at the contact, but quickly took the gesture as a sign of me being friendly. His fingers curled around mine in a weird kinda...lock and key mechanism that strangely worked.

"I never told Wanda about any of it, she had too much to worry about. She was very scared, especially at that age. If I needed any, I would get help from a doctor that I knew up the road, but I would usually try and patch it up myself." He shook his head and a small laugh left his throat. "Wanda always thought I was clumsy..." He gave me a meaningful look and added "and still does."

Secrets. Damn. I wasn't a very good keeper of those, but I'm sure I would be able to keep a small one from Wanda. I doubt it would ever come up in conversation anyway. I was surprised that after seven or eight years, he would've told her by now about what he used to do as a 16 year old to keep her safe. However, I didn't know what relationship they had apart from extremely close. Being that way, I thought no secrets would be kept between them...evidently not.

I wished for that sibling bond, but, alas, I would never get that chance. Well, maybe I would develop something like that with one of the Avengers. I hoped for that anyway...

"She still doesn't know?" I was surprised that they hadn't had a conversation about it or that Wanda didn't notice her older brother's bruises or scars.

"She can't know." he said, almost pleadingly, squeezing my fingers a little tighter as he spoke. His fingers were so nice to hold in mine. "I got beaten up a week before we volunteered and got cuts everywhere. I've still got marks."

He pointed to a scar on his upper forearm, above the hand I was holding. The fingers on my other hand slid up from his wrist to lightly touch over the mark lying there. It was faint, but still present. "I have loads, so she didn't notice very much." he told me as I looked up at him, his eyes focusing on the scar. "The serum helped a little, but they won't go completely."

"Why would you want them to?" I asked. His eyes drifted from his skin to my face with a confused expression. "I mean, they are part of your childhood, a physical representation of what you had to do to keep Wanda safe. You should be proud of them, not ashamed."

His frown softened slightly, but he still looked a bit confused. I didn't know how else to elaborate, so I smiled and went back over to the frying pan, reaching for the pancake mix to pour in the pan.

"Wait! There's no way you are ruining these babies." he said, his cheeky flare back in his voice as he nudged me away from the stove area. I glared at him, but he just gave me a wink and laughed.

After he dished up some pancakes, we went out onto the balcony to overlook the view below us. We were still travelling over the sea and I had a brief flashback to when I attempted to run off the balcony when Phil had died, Natasha saving me at the right moment. I was very glad that she did.

"Are you scared about when you start training properly?" he asked, his plate already clean from his stack of pancakes. I didn't even see him use his super-speed to eat the food, but he must've to have cleared the plate that fast. I looked down at my untouched pancake stack covered in golden syrup that looked too good to delve into. Nevertheless, I still picked up my fork and pushed it into the stack.

"I'm worried about the red headed woman…" I told him, honestly, as I took a bite. I did find her quite intimidating, even though her height made her smaller than me. I found Pietro seemed trustworthy enough with that information.

"Who? Natasha?" he asked and I nodded sheepishly, embarrassed that I was afraid of an Avenger, someone who I was working with. The Black Widow had a reputation that I was afraid of. I didn't think it was just me...hopefully.

"Yeah, I'm slightly afraid that she will train me until I can no longer stand up straight!" I said and Pietro nodded, chuckling somewhat nervously.

"I'm scared of that too. She seems..."

"Hardworking?" I supplied and he nodded in agreement. 'Black Widow' isn't exactly a welcoming name. I had seen her name plastered across news channels in the past, some good things, some bad things, but most of it about Russia and her time in the red room. I still remember the television broadcast of her at Capital Hill. From what I had seen, she was one of the most powerful women I had ever seen, going alongside Maria Hill and Pepper Potts. The Avengers seemed to have strong women on their side, something that I was afraid of being.

What if I couldn't be like the other women? What if I had an embarrassing moment on television that I wouldn't be able to come back from? Would I be chucked out of the Avengers? Where would I go after that? These were too many questions for this early in the morning.

Her partner seemed to be a little softer though - Clint? I think his name was Clint. I knew Hawkeye was his Avenger name, which was useful for knowing he was the archer on the team, because they need a good eye. Also, he had tattoos on his right shoulder for some reason, like tally lines. I would have to question the archer about that later.

I wondered whether Pietro had any tattoos. I didn't see any when I first examined him, but that didn't mean he didn't have any. I imagined him having a sexy one on his hip bone for some reason, but I knew that wasn't true. I only know that because I remember checking him ou-I mean doing my medical checks...obviously.

"What about Hawkeye though? He seems pretty cool..." I said, shrugging my shoulders in hope that I didn't seem in love with the archer. He was an archer assassin. What isn't cool about that?! I hadn't really spoken to him, but he seemed really sweet, even though he had a resting bitch face. I didn't judge on resting bitch faces though.

"Cool? The guy is an asshole." I felt a little disappointed at that. I hadn't gotten to know the man yet, but to me he seemed okay. They say you should never meet your heroes. However, I would judge how nice he is over the next week.

"Why is that?" I asked, curious as to why he didn't like the seemingly innocent archer. He seemed to have the same joking nature as Pietro, so I can't imagine why they wouldn't get along.

"He's annoying." I frowned at his words.

"He's just like you. How could you not like him?" I asked and Pietro looked insulted. Genuinely insulted. I rolled my eyes and looked back up at the sky. He stayed silent for a while and that's how we remained for the next fifteen minutes, not uncomfortable, just peaceful. It was quite nice really...being with him, even if we weren't talking.

 **Thank you so much for reading this chapter. Please review, because it's Christmas and you're amazing followers. Can't wait to post the next part of the story. Should be up soon. :) Thank you again!**


	8. Breakfast Before New Beginnings

**I know. I've been a bad fanfiction writer. I am so sorry! Thank you for the huge amount of support that you have given me. I'm going through a lot of stress at the minute! LANGUAGE WARNING ADVISED!**

 **Response to reviews:**

 **Moonleaf Stormrunner - Hello, I really hope I'm not too late for your next update. I have been really busy and there just hasn't been enough time for me to write. Hopefully, I'll find enough time soon. Thank you for being supportive, though!**

 **Howling2themoon - It has been a long time to come, but hopefully I can make up for it with this.**

 **Quicksilver1 - You have no idea how happy it makes me when I see your reviews. Thank you so much for this. I'm sorry that I haven't written anything recently, I've been so busy.**

 **Princess2017 - Sorry for not updating in so long. Thank you for the review, though!**

 **Enjoy the chapter - the next one should be out quicker than this one.**

There we were, Pietro and I sitting in silence for about twenty minutes straight until we started washing up and he spoke. "You not going to go back to sleep?" he asked, putting away one of the last plates that we were cleaning.

"I thought I already told you that I wake up _really_ early, so I'm usually up at this time. I should be working out right now." I frowned at myself, feeling annoyed at myself for taking a day off. I'd been quite dedicated to my morning workouts for quite some time and now Pietro had to come and ruin it all. I wasn't sure whether I liked being distracted by him or not, in more ways that one.

"You should learn to chill, glass girl." I had never heard that nickname before. I raised an eyebrow at him and he just smirked to himself, like he usually did. "Invisible...I can see right through you..." he explained, if you could even call it an explanation, and threw a wink my way. It shouldn't have affected my insides as much as it did, but his eyes on me made me squirm. Comfortably or uncomfortably, I really couldn't tell. There was something about him that made my chest beat at a high rate that I wasn't used to. I was trying not to pay too much attention to the effect he had on me because I didn't need feelings in the way of a working relationship. No time for that shit!

"Can't say that I've ever heard that nickname before." I chuckled, leaning against the side of the table. He huffed a laughed, but after that, it went quiet and I couldn't look up to his eyes, knowing that it would make things more awkward than the silence. _If I don't look up, will I look weird? I'm just...staring straight at the floor. Is this weird? Am I being weird?_

"I need to sleep, but I feel bad leaving you here all by yourself." he said, drawing my gaze away from the floor to his eyes. It was only then I noticed the way his eyes seemed to droop and suddenly felt really sorry for making him watch Shawshank Redemption and eat pancakes with me. Not regretting the pancakes, though...because, you know...pancakes...

"Pietro..." I said, giving him a deadpanned expression. "Go to bed." I wasn't going to make him stay up if he was just tired. A speedster probably needed all the sleep he could get to keep his energy up.

He smiled briefly and dipped his head, standing up from his seat. "'Night, Riley."

"Sleep well, Pietro." I replied sweetly, hoping not to come across as too sympathetic given the whole nightmare situation. He gave a smile, more like a grimace, and turned to walk towards the door.

"I'll try." he called as his tall figure walked out of the room. I watched him go, watching as the light from the kitchen slowly faded off his back until I was left staring at a blank doorway. I stayed there for a few moments, looking into the darkness of the doorway as if I was waiting for a scary monster to emerge from it. Perhaps I was just waiting for him to come back.

I shook my head and got myself into gear, knowing that a good workout would sort it all out. It always seemed to help clear my mind and my mind _definitely_ needed clearing after having a chat with the hot mess that was Pietro Maximoff. I refused to admit that I had a crush on the guy. He was just hot. Who wasn't when they were an Avenger, to be honest!

I worked out, mostly boxing out my problems. I noticed Natasha and Clint come into the gym for a while, Natasha barely noticing me and Clint giving me a friendly wave and a smile. He definitely seemed warmer than Natasha. They started what seemed like a very intense sparring session whilst I finished out my boxing workout. After boxing out my problems until 7 am, I went to the water machine and drank half a bottle in one straight go. The best feeling is drinking a huge amount of water when your throat feels like a desert.

"Hey!" I nearly flinched at the voice that sounded from behind me. I turned and noticed Clint was the one addressing me, a bottle of water in his own hand. Natasha was silently standing behind him, looking at me. She wasn't glaring or looking friendly...she was just...looking. I found her quite odd, to be honest. Knowing Clint from previous missions made me a little more familiar with him, but she didn't have to be so cold. I wasn't affected by it because apparently, she was this cold with everyone. I didn't like it.

"Hey." I said with a smile, addressing them both in the hope that Natasha wouldn't hate me. She seemed to hold back against everyone, though. The famous story of Black Widow, a woman brought up in some of cruellest conditions in the world. The files had been leaked online. I read them, of course, who wouldn't. I felt like a bad person for finding out all the dirty little secrets my colleagues had been hiding from me, a lot of them not liking me anyway.

"We're going for breakfast. Do you want to come with us?" Natasha asked, that same hesitant look in her eyes as she looked me up and down. She only seemed to look differently at Clint, as if she knew she could completely and utterly trust him with her life. It must've been a lot for him to take.

"Are you guys showering first or are we gonna show up all sweaty and disgusting?" I asked incredulously. I was most likely flushed and covered in head to toe with sweat. Not a good look and not one that is often welcomed at breakfast.

"No one gives a shit around here. We show up to breakfast like this all the time." He frowned for a moment, looking at Natasha. "Well, I do. You hardly ever break a sweat."

"You've got a serum in you, right?" I asked and immediately regretted saying it the second after the words came out of the mouth. Surprisingly, Natasha wasn't the one who was affected, Clint was. Clint's smiley, welcoming expression seemed to change into a solemn, almost angry glare at me. I shifted my shoulders as Natasha answered the question.

"Yeah, Rogers isn't the only super soldier around here. Though, people don't tend to call me a super soldier. Anyway, breakfast?" she asked, quickly changing the subject. I would say that she was subtly trying to change the subject, but I didn't think that she was. She made it seem quite obvious that she didn't want to talk about it.

"Sure." I said and walked out with them. I noticed Natasha's hands quickly brush against Clint's hair and he seemed to cheer up after that like she had some kind of power over him to suddenly make him feel better. They had an odd, yet cute, relationship, not that I would tell them, though. If I called something that Natasha was related to remotely cute then I think she would literally decapitate me.

"Do you know how many times we've asked Fury to recruit you?" Clint asked, saddling up to my side as we neared the kitchen.

"We?" I asked, wondering whether this was just him, him and Natasha or the entire group. Probably not as they wouldn't have been so surprised by my skills.

"Me and Nat." I briefly flicked my eyes over to 'Nat' to see if she was affected by the nickname. She wasn't. "Told Fury that we could make a good agent out of you with your skillset, a proper agent."

"Are S.H.I.E.L.D agents not proper agents to you, Barton?" I pondered raising an eyebrow, something that seemed to pull a smirk from Natasha's face. How the hell was I supposed to know whether it was real or not? It looked real, but I wasn't going to assume it was. She was quite a deceptive person.

"Well," he shrugged. "You've gotta start somewhere." As we entered the kitchen, I was pleased to see that it wasn't empty. I didn't know how long I could keep up a conversation between the two deadliest assassins. They made me nervous if truth be told.

"I've made some eggs if you would like some?" chimed the voice of Wanda from the cooking stove. She was up quite early for being up at three-ish this morning. Then again, Pietro was also up, even though we were talking only two hours ago. The man in question, Rhodey, Steve and Sam were all sitting round the table, eating what seemed to be poached eggs on toast.

"I would love some, Scarlet." Clint said, hopping onto a stool next to Pietro. Even though he said that he didn't like Clint early this morning, Pietro didn't seem that affected by the man.

"Scarlet? I thought your name was Wanda?" I asked, taking a seat opposite Clint, next to Rhodes who was now getting up to put his plate in the sink. I quickly let my eyes drift over Pietro, noticing how his posture seemed a little better. Hopefully, that meant that his injuries had improved over the past two hours.

"Scarlet Witch is her Avengers title, remember? Speaking of, we still need one for you." Sam said, reaching for the salt to put on his eggs. I liked Sam. He seemed...chirpy. Thankfully Tony wasn't awake to make any of his delightful inputs into the discussion of what my name should be.

"I still think Invisible Woman is a good title." Pietro said, not tearing his eyes up from his plate. I didn't know whether to be offended or if I was just overthinking his body language. I over-thought a lot of things.

"Nah, it just seems...I don't know. Obvious? I think it's too...simple?" I questioned, putting my elbow on the table and my chin in my palm as I thought over the name. The title seemed really cliche, but sounded much better than Invisible Girl. That title sounded like I was a child waiting for their first day at secondary school.

"Hmmm….have a think. You get the final say, but I would make it quick before the public chooses one for you." Steve replied, Wanda giving him what seemed like his second serving of two poached eggs on two slices of toast.

"How many eggs and toast, Riley?" Wanda asked politely, getting some cutlery out of the drawer and walking over to put it next to me.

"Two of each, thanks, Wanda." I smiled as she placed the cutlery down and put a hand on my shoulder. I hadn't really had much affection from the Avengers, the Maximoff twins seeming to be very open with their emotions. It comforted me and I hadn't felt this loved in quite a while...well ever. I had more of a family in the Avengers than I ever did with my own. I was abducted, beaten, abused and created this monster. I found comfort in feel like a monster among other monsters.

"Thank God Tony was labelled 'Iron Man' instead of 'Metal Monster' or something ridiculous." Rhodey said as he put his plate in the cupboard, returning to the previous conversation we were having.

"I just can't think of anything. I'll have to do some brainstorming or something." I huffed, biting my lips and trying to think of something good and catchy. Invisi _...invisible enchantress? No, that sounds crap. Woman of...glass? The glass? Eye of...FOR FUCKS SAKE!_ "What if I can't think of a superhero name and the public comes up with a really bad one?" I was panicking slightly because I didn't want a shitty superhero name, especially one that had the word 'girl' in it!

"Look," Steve said, holding up his hands a little in an attempt to calm me down a little. I felt quite anxious and I could feel some spots of my body feel odd like they always did when I was anxious. I looked down at my skin and saw some patches of invisibility spread over my arms. "It's not a big deal, okay? You have plenty of time."

Thinking about the public opinion just made me think about the idea that they might not like me. Adding a new Avenger to the group might stir up some trouble in the newspapers and they might dislike me for joining so easily. "What if they hate me?"

"Who? The public?" Sam asked as I stood out of my seat and took a few steps back towards the wall.

"Yeah…" I said, trying to take a deep breath and calm the panic going through my body. "What happens if they hate me an-and they-" A blast of air rushed past me and I felt momentarily disorientated before I felt someone's hands grabbing onto my arms. The rush of air made me shut my eyes tight, but as soon as I realised someone was holding me, I opened them. Pietro was in front of me, soothingly brushing his thumbs across my forearms.

"Everything is going to be fine. You're with the Avengers now, that's a status symbol enough. Me, Wanda, Sam, Rhodey, Vision - we all have to go through the same thing as you do. We will be accepted, don't worry. They'll love you. I have no doubt about it." he said, slowly running his hands down my arms to hold my hands in his. "Are you okay now?" he asked, disjointing his hands from mine and placed them by his sides. I seemed to have calmed down. It wasn't like I was going to have a full-blown panic attack, but I usually got quite fidgety if I didn't stop the problem I was constantly thinking about.

"Hungry." was all I said and sat back down at the table, the others smiling at me in a somewhat sympathetic fashion, not that I expected much else. Maybe I was wrong and this was the wrong family for me? Wow...opinions can change fast, can't they!

"Good." he replied and sped back to where his seat was. I looked up to frown at him as he tucked into his (God knows what portion of) eggs on toast.

"Hey! I told you to stop speeding!" I said, pointing a finger at him as I disapprovingly glared at him. He just shrugged it off, but I could see the small smirk coming from the side of his lips.

"All healed up, doc." I gave him a suspicious look and hummed.

"I'll be checking later, you know!" I said as Wanda brought eggs over to me. "Thank you." I said as she placed them in front of me. Goodness, they looked good, especially after the long workout I had just had. I hadn't had poached eggs in quite a while, but I'm sure these would be just as brilliant as I remember poached eggs to be. She replied with a smile and went back to the poacher to cook some more for the people who would want seconds and thirds or fourths, in Pietro's case.

"So, plan for today." As if on cue, Vision came through the door.

"Morning Vision." Wanda beamed and we all followed suit, apart from Pietro who just waved.

"Good morning everyone." he replied, courteously, and went to stand at the side of the room.

"Anyway, as I was saying, we should be arriving in half an hour. You can have a little time to settle in and such, your bags should already be in your rooms when you arrive. Our arrival time will be about 7:30. If everyone's comfortable with it, we would really like the start training as soon as possible. Is that alright?" Steve asked and everyone seemed to nod.

"Good. Hill should be there to tell you where each place is, but you can have a look round yourselves if you want. I haven't even had the chance to go around yet, but apparently, there are people in reception that have offered to take us on tours, so you should be able to find people there."

"There's staff already there?" Sam asked, scraping the plate clean of any yolk that remained.

"There have been for about a week now to make sure everything is up and running. Everything in the rooms is clean and apparently Pepper has picked out some clothes that she thought would suit you all." I felt bad that someone was doing all of this for me. There were people cleaning my rooms, someone picking out new clothes for me and I was the one getting paid. I felt extremely guilty about it, but I think I would just have to get used to it. The others didn't seem that bothered about it.

"Isn't she here?" Wanda asked, gesturing with her finger to the structure around her.

"She wakes up very early for...yoga, I think?" Steve speculated as he looked at Natasha, who nodded at his question.

"That woman is crazy with everything she manages to fit in with her life." Clint said, going to the coffee machine to get another coffee, yet again. I swear he was obsessed with the stuff.

"And she has to look after Tony." Sam joked to which everyone laughed. Man, how does the poor woman cope? I noticed from across the table that Pietro was staring at me with a rather solemn look on his face. I smiled gently at him and he let his lips drift up for a second before they were drawn away by Steve talking again.

"So, settle in at 7:30, training at mid-day, small party at 8 pm." Steve added, his voice not sounding ecstatic at the prospect of the last idea.

"Tony?" Rhodey asked and Steve pursed his lips, nodding and looking mildly irritated by the decision Stark seemed to have made.

"Who else?!" he said, reaching over to grab an apple from the bowl that was placed on the kitchen surface. "I'll see you at the bay in half an hour. Pack up and get ready to board to your new home." he said, taking a bite out of the apple and exiting the room. Home. The prospect scared me, a whole new place, new people that I would have to get used to running about everywhere. In a sense, the hospital was like that, but there weren't as many attachments. If someone died, they were dead. It was clinical to me, not personal. Some people would call it inhuman, but I would call it practical. I missed the hospital in all honestly, but right now, I had to stick this out for...however long it would go on for. They might hate me as soon as they start training with me, but hopefully, that won't happen. Hopefully.

I quickly finished eating my eggs, leaving myself plenty of time to pack. Everyone left apart from Wanda, Pietro, Natasha and Clint, but the assassins were just making their exit. Natasha stopped on her way past and asked: "Are you scared?"

I thought for a second of how to answer the question. If I lied and said I was ready for whatever I was going to face, she would probably be able to see through it, but if I told the truth she might think I was a chicken. I didn't want to start out on bad terms with her, so I chose to tell the truth. "A little bit, but I'm surrounded by superheroes, so I believe I have the right to be." I responded, laughing a little. She smiled. That's...good?

"You do, indeed." she said with a look that I was dangerously like a smirk. Ever the suspicious one. Perhaps she enjoyed being that person that people couldn't figure out, she enjoyed the mystery of the 'Black Widow' and made people afraid of her to get attention. People did odd things for attention. Maybe all Natasha wanted was someone to care for her, perhaps that's why she liked Clint so much. She enjoyed the attention that he gave her but didn't try too hard to get it. I didn't think that she was an attention seeker, but I'd never thought about it like that before. Some people must see it that way, which made me sad. She deserved Clint's care and affection after going so long without any.

"Now do you get why she scares me?" Pietro said. I had been so caught up in my thoughts that I hadn't even noticed Natasha, Clint and Wanda leave the room already. When did that happen?

"Yes, I get it now. After five minutes of knowing her, you wished you never had." I said but quickly apologised. "Sorry, that was rude. I didn't mean it like th-"

"No, I get it. She's…" He shivered slightly before finishing. "Creepy." He washed the plates in a flash of blue and before I knew it, all of the surfaces were clean and tidy.

"That must be useful. You won't need one of the slaves to tidy your room for you." I said back-handedly, getting up from my seat to put my own plate in the sink, knowing that if I left it there, Pietro was speed after it and wash it up himself.

"So you feel bad also?" I think I figured out the reason why his voice was so sexy - it was the accent. Definitely the accent. I don't know why accents seemed to bad-ass, but they were to me, not that I realised it until now. "About the people cleaning after us?" he added. I realised that his Sokovian to English translations weren't perfect, but I filled in the gaps. There weren't many gaps to fill as his English was actually pretty good. They must've taught him how to speak English in the HYDRA facility.

"Yeah, I'm not too comfortable with it. I might just do most of the cleaning myself so that they have less to do. I like doing my chores, so hopefully, there is a way to opt out of the slave service." I said with a little laugh as I finished scrubbing the plate. I looked for a tea towel, but Pietro had one in his hands before I could get a glance at the whole room. I smiled and took it from his hands, hoping that he didn't notice the blush that formed on my cheeks from his gentlemanly nature. I don't think he realised that he was a gentleman, even though I knew there was a fuck boy persona underneath all that charm. Perhaps Wanda would spill the truth at some point.

"I'm sure there is. Clint says that he would, but he rarely has time to look after himself." Pietro answered as I wiped the plate clean of dishwater. I actually quite enjoyed cleaning up after myself, feeling accomplished after doing so.

"Well, I will definitely make time. Somewhere in the seemingly busy schedule that they seem to have, there must be time." I said, walking over to the cupboard where the plates were stored.

"We." I opened the small door, plate in hand and kitchen cupboard handle in the other. I turned around to face him, my eyebrows creasing at his strange reply.

"What?" I asked, confused at his odd need to say a random pronoun. Or perhaps he was talking in French? Maybe it was the Sokovian word for 'yes' and I had just misunderstood. Did Wanda do this too?

"You said the schedule _they_ seem to have, but you mean the schedule that _we_ seem to have." he corrected, putting his hands in his pockets as my face relaxed from it's frowning state. I nodded stiffly and put the plate on top of the stack, a small clacking noise sounding as I did.

"Right." I said, shutting the cupboard door and lowering myself back down so my feet were flat on the floor. "We." I told myself. We were a team. It wasn't them and me, it was we. "I'm are part of a team now, just like a hospital had its team, though I was pretty much excluded from them, but that...won't happen again…" Even though I was meant to sound sure of myself, I sounded anything but.

Pietro slowly walked towards me and slowly shook his head. "You don't need to worry, everything will be fine." I had to feel he was going to hug me, pull me in quickly and let me cry into his chest about the fact that the hospital staff weren't very nice to me and that's exactly...what didn't happen. He smiled briefly, leant passed me to grab a bottle of water and bumped my hip with his as he turned to leave the room. Okay...that did make me laugh. "Laters, Invisible Girl." he shouted, giving one hell of a cocky wave with the back of his hand.

My face of laughter fell to a scowl that was directed at the back of his head. "Asshole!" I shouted, half-laughing as I made my way back to my room to pack.

 **Hope you enjoyed this new update. The only reason why this was possible is because I am on the way to stay at my sister's house and had three hours on the** **train** **. This took two hours of solid hard work. I really appreciate the feedback you give me, EVEN IF IT'S JUST ONE WORD!**

 **I NEED YOUR HELP: Guys, if you can think of a good name for Riley, PLEASE TELL ME! I will most likely make the final decision through a poll, but if you have any ideas, please tell me through review or private message!**


	9. Hanging On The Edge

**Reviews:**

 **MoonleafStormRunner - So Riley is the new girl, was a doctor and is now joining the Avengers. Sorry if all of this confused you! Haha! Thank you very much for your kind words and please keep reviewing. I really appreciate it! Also, apologies for the confusion with the poll!**

 **Howling2themoon - Really glad you liked this chapter. Hopefully, you like this one as well. I spent a lot of time thinking about what I was going to do for it. Thank you for always reviewing my stories by the way :)**

 **Quicksilver1 - Haha! When are you gonna get an account already? :P Thank you for reminding me about the codename. I might do a poll on my page for what she is going to be called! That is a very good suggestion, by the way, I like it! :) You always leave really lovely reviews and it's such a shame I can't message you in personally to thank you! Aha! THANK YAAA!**

 **Printessa - Maybe the mysterious love is him...maybe not...you'll just have to wait and see ;) Thanks for the review my darling!**

 **Grace - I might in the future and maybe do a sequel that is M rated, but I think I'll put it to a poll some time in the future to get a full spectrum. I'm going to start some M rated stories soon, this may turn into one of those, but I'm not sure yet! Thanks for reviewing!**

 **What Riley does in this chapter might seem a little odd, but I like to think that her character is a bit wild.**

I hardly had anything to pack in the first place, so I took hardly any time at all to get ready and have a quick shower, carefully placing the towels on the side of the bathtub in a neat pile. Deciding that I didn't want to leave just yet, I spent the last fifteen minutes outside on my balcony, looking out of the view of New York slowly coming towards me. This was my new life. I would have to get used to it. The press, rumours, autographs, keeping my life secret. I knew what I was signing up for, but being up in the air hadn't let it sink in yet. I hadn't been brave enough to turn on the news yet, to see the destruction that was caused in Sokovia all over again. I hadn't seen the details like the Captain and Clint and Rhodey, God knows how Wanda and Pietro are feeling about it. Watching it would make it real and right now I didn't want it to be real, I just wanted to go and train to be an Avenger and move on. I knew there would be press conferences about it and I would have to help with the answers, even though I was only a doctor from it all. Becoming an Avenger was going to be difficult, but I knew that I would just have to embrace every obstacle that came in my way. There were skeletons in my closet that weren't known to the public. I would have to ask Maria some point about whether I would need to reveal the things I spoke to her and the others about last night.

I let my hair out of the hairband I had tied it in for my workout and let the harsh air hit my skin. I was only dressed in some shorts and a t-shirt, but the cold didn't affect me very much. I felt like I needed to get closer to it, closer to the air and not be held behind these barriers of a balcony. I often felt like this, the need to live on the edge of the world and just feel free when things got too pent up. I most likely felt like this because of this morning when I was freaking out about what people might think of me. What could I do…

I glanced over the edge of the balcony and realised exactly what needed to be done. I needed to hang off the edge of the balcony. I know that makes me sound like a maniac, but it's just the way I work. It would be perfectly safe. I was strong enough to hold myself there for at least ten minutes, but I would only need a few. I just wanted to feel the air whooshing round my body. Perhaps the battle in Sokovia had made me crazy and I was finally letting it all out. I wanted to scream, but I knew that that would cause a panic with everyone. I stood up and went to the railing, ready to turn on my invisibility to hang off without someone seeing. Also, we were at a lower altitude as we were close to land, which meant that I wasn't going to go flying off the side of the building.

"Not gonna jump, are you?" Pietro joked, staring at me with a slightly cautious expression. I smirked at him and winked, feeling a little more adventurous than usual.

"I'm gonna hang off the balcony." He laughed for a second, his hands being thrown up slightly by it. He still smiled as he stared at me for a second before coming to the realisation that I was serious.

"I'm sorry, what?" He stared at me incredulously and stepped a little closer to the edge of his balcony. Due to our balconies being so close, I was nearly within touching distance of him.

"You heard me. I need to blow off some steam and I think this is the best way to do so. Objections?" I asked, raising an eyebrow and he nodded very quickly, still looking at me like I was mad. I wasn't mad, just a little eccentric. I cared about what people thought of me, but at the minute, I didn't care at all about what Pietro thought of me. He could judge me all he wanted and I couldn't give a shit.

"Quite a few, actually. What if you fall and die? I won't have a partner!" he said, exasperatedly. I rolled my eyes and sighed to myself, placing my hands on my balcony.

"God, you're so selfish." I chuckled to myself and quickly pushed myself up on the edge of my balcony facing, the one next to his railing, skillfully balancing on my feet and extending my arms. He seemed to give some kind of small shriek and push his hand immediately in order for me to take. I did, looking at his wide eyes for a second. It amused that he was so worried (or was it scared), but eventually, I jumped to his side of the balcony, his arms quickly pulling me down to his level. His hands grabbed my waist and he shook my slightly, eyes still wide.

"Are you crazy?" he asked, seeming to be angry at me, but I could see how he thought I was crazy in a good way. If that's possible?

"Um...yes." I said, smiling and pulling away from his grip on my waist. I loved the time I spent with Pietro, but allowing myself to get used to his distractions, like his hands on my hips, would only end in tears. I wouldn't let myself get led on by the flirting that he considered talking. No feelings here! "If it makes you feel better, I'll hang off your balcony."

"What? No! That's worse." he complained, throwing his arms into the air.

"Why is it worse?" I asked, creasing my eyebrows as I looked back at him. "It means you can be there for me if you 'think I'm going to fall'." I said, using air quotes, because I would never fall. I saw him wait a second and consider it for a moment, feeling somewhat pleased with myself that I had managed to persuade him round to my way of thinking. He stared at me suspiciously, but after a minute of contemplating it, rolled his eyes.

"You don't deserve to be my partner if you die by doing something so reckless." he said, sitting down on one of his balcony chairs as he smirked at me as if he was waiting for the show to start.

"Ooh, burn!" I said, staring right into his eyes as I turned my invisibility on and stepped over the barrier of his balcony, the noises where my feet connected with the metal catching his attention. I gripped onto the metal tightly and perched my feet in between the bottom spaces.

"Who says that anymore!" he said, his eyes not going in any particular direction. I ignored him for a moment and focused on what I was doing. I let my hands slip down to the bottom of the balcony. I stayed there for a few moments, watching the clouds pass below me, glimpses of the city coming through now and then. It was beautiful and felt so exhilarating just to hang on the edge. There was a forcefield beneath me that would catch me if I fell, but it wouldn't be the most comfortable thing to land on. I would never fall though.

"Do you want me to give you a countdown, little girl?" he asked, childishly, and I rolled my eyes. His little digs at me being a girl frustrated me the most. I knew he was just poking fun, but it was starting to piss me off. I would talk with him about it later.

"How did you know I hadn't gone yet?" I asked, gripping a little tighter on the bars as I leant back a little, gazing up at the morning sky. The sun was barely out and was just playing with the clouds a little, streams of it bursting through the grey now and again.

"I didn't hear a girlish squeal come from you yet!" I groaned, feeling like banging my head against the railings. The Sokovian was really starting to make my blood boil.

"Oh, piss off!" I said, letting one foot off of the railing before taking the other one off too. I let my hands slide until they reached the bottom of the railings, my body hanging off of the balcony in complete oblivion to everyone else, my invisible power completely in my control.

"How is it?" he asked as if he could see when I had gone. I checked, making sure that I was 100% invisible. I was. The answer to his question was not a simple one, but I would spare him all of the details.

"Fantastic." I replied simply, letting my eyes shut and embrace the feeling of true freedom. The rush of adrenaline made me excited, happy even. Like there was nothing better than that feeling, the feeling of letting go completely, life being in the balance of your own two hands gripping onto some metal. I wasn't part of the Avengers, I wasn't a nurse, I wasn't HYDRA's experiment. I was just me in that moment. I didn't have time to think about Pietro or Sokovia or Fury's need to involve me in problems that didn't concern or the paperwork that was overdue by three years, it was simply...me. Just me. I wasn't thinking, I was just feeling. The wind was slithering its way around my body, seeming to touch every section of my skin, most of my legs exposed by the shorts I wore and the top I wore being loose fitting, the air being able to make it's way to my stomach and chest. It wasn't cold, the invisibility seemed to give me a barrier of warmth, but it wasn't warm either. It was the perfect temperature and it made me feel at home. Perfect.

I spent a couple of minutes there, embracing the wind, but I knew that we were leaving soon and had to get up. Also, my arms wouldn't last much longer clinging onto the railings. My hands were starting to ache and I could feel them numbing slightly. I noticed the land coming increasingly closer, which wasn't a good sign either. I climbed my way back up and noticed that Pietro was sitting there, eyes shut, seemingly embracing the wind too. I jumped back onto the balcony and he immediately opened his eyes at the sound, watching me as I turned back into my visible state. "You good?"

"Much better, thank you." I replied, smiling at him as he stood up from his chair. "Did you have a good time as well?"

His eyebrows twitched a little as he looked out at the wind. "I didn't realise how peaceful it could be. I'm a little..." He moved his hands around his head and groaned. "caught up in everything sometimes. I can't...can't seem to..." He forced his hands down to his sides and tensed them for a moment, his head dipping.

"Relax?" I supplied and he nodded. Quicksilver - quick speed that comes with a quick temper. Quite the hothead, not that I would call him that out loud, though I thought that Wanda must've at some point.

"It's difficult to relax when you've been paranoid from the age of ten." he said sarcastically, but I know that behind every sarcastic comment of his was an issue undiscussed. I wondered how many issues Pietro had going on. I couldn't believe that they were all discussed with his sister, because there has to be some things that you can't share with siblings. It's not that it was a problem, because I would help him get through them, in fact I loved helping people if I could (Doctor and all), but I felt sorry that he had to go through so much shit. I think he was keeping a lot of things from me, but then again everyone was, including me.

"Pietro..." I said, thinking for a second that I quite liked the sound of his name - very original. I wondered what it meant. "Nothing bad is going to happen to you anymore." I took his hand, which made him look up to my face. There, his attention! That's all I needed. Convincing anyone to think differently was very difficult when they don't even look at you. "I'll make sure of it." He nodded, changing his gaze to look back down at the ground in quite a shy manner, and I smiled back at him, not that he noticed. That seemed to be the end of that conversation then...

I went back to the railing, ready to jump back over to my balcony, but he caught my wrist. He gestured with his head to his room. "Door. There's been quite enough acrobatics today." I pulled a sulking face, but he gave me a deadpanned expression that suggested he would drag me out of the door if he had to. I huffed and walked past him to get to the door, noticing that his room looked like it had hardly been touched since he arrived. I then remembered that his super speed meant that he probably did all the cleaning within the space of two seconds. I walked to the door and let myself out, not wanting to be in Pietro's way any longer. I was still a little angry that he kept on referring to me as girl and not woman or, you know, my REAL NAME!

I picked up my stuff and looked at the clock, noticing that it was nearly 7:30. I made my way towards the bay, meeting Wanda on the way. "Heya!" I called and she turned round, her neutral face changing to a very excited one when she saw me.

"Hey Riley!" she said, very gleefully. I think she liked me, which was good. I had one person I could rely on, not fully feeling reliant on Pietro just yet. Wanda was so sweet and I liked her a lot.

"How did you sleep?" I asked, opening the door and letting her through first. She thanked me as she pushed the elevator button.

"Heavenly until Pietro woke me up." she said with a slightly sad smile on my face. She looked at me cautiously as we waited for the lift to arrive. "Did he tell you..."

"About the nightmare?" I finished and she nodded as we stepped into the elevator. _So many buttons on this elevator._

"Yeah, I had trouble getting back to sleep after that. I worry about him much." she said, pressing the underground button. I could see the concern in her eyes for her brother, it was often there when he was around. I felt like reaching out to give her a hug or something. "How was yours?" she asked, changing the subject.

"It was alright." I didn't want to tell her about my nightmares. She didn't need to be concerned with my problems considering that she seemed to have quite a few. _Shit...that's kind of a mean thing to say, but it's also true I guess._

"You ready to face...whatever we have to do?" she said, waving her hands around a little, and the elevator slowed.

"Not exactly excited to get on with it, but I'm sure I will be." I said, in a half-confident voice. I hoped I would be anyway. I did miss the hospital, but I was starting to like this group just a little bit.

We stepped out of the elevator and realised that most of the team were waiting there, bags in their hands or by the sides of their feet. Hill was off to one side of the hanger by herself, tablet in hand as she tapped on the screen, looking sophisticated as always. Her eyes flicked up to meet mine for a second before almost immediately looking back down at the screen, her lips staying in the straight immaculate line they often tended to have.

Fury, Steve, Sam and Vision were together on the other side, Sam's leg casually resting against one of the seats connected to the wall. Vision had his arms behind his back and I could see them clasped there. Fury and Steve made me laugh - they both had their arms crossed over their fronts, much like a leader would. I found it odd that they had a similar stance given they were both very different people. Fury wasn't emotive like Steve was, who cared more about saving lives than getting the job done. They definitely had different wardrobes choices - black leather and no sense of humour compared to brown leather and emotive. The only eyes that noticed us were Vision's, his seeming to soften slightly as they locked onto us. He analysed Wanda's features a little more than he did for me before returning to look at the current speaker in the conversation, Sam.

Natasha and Clint were lingering in the centre of the room, Natasha's arms folded over her chest, like the Captain's and Fury's were. Clint, on the other hand, had his fingers put through the loops on his trousers, looking way too cool to be here. He smiled at us as we arrived before looking back at Nat and continuing his conversation wth her. I liked Clint. And he seemed to like me, which was good. I looked round and it was no surprise to see that Stark wasn't here yet.

"Are you both prepared?" Steve asked as he walked over to us, leaving Fury, Sam and Vision to talk to themselves.

"All packed and sorted." I reassured him with a smile, one that was quickly wiped off my face as a rush of wind flew past me, making my jump. I scowled at Pietro who was now standing on the other side of Wanda with bags in his hand. He smirked at me and I was about to remind him that he didn't need to use his powers for EVERYTHING, but there was an announcement over the tannoy.

"Please be prepared for landing in one minute." a voice sounded over the speakers. This time, it wasn't JARVIS. I found comfort in that, knowing that a person was driving the helicarrier rather than a machine.

"Here we go." Sam said, sliding into a seat and strapping himself in. I followed his lead and sat down in one of the empty seats, Wanda and Clint sitting on either side of me. I looked around, most people talking to each other in private conversations, but noticed Wanda looked a little stressed. I put my hand on hers and smiled as she looked at me nervously.

"I don't fly that much." she told me and I nodded, a smirk on her face.

"No kidding." I smiled back at then put my head back on the headrest, keeping my hand in Wanda's to reassure her that everything was going to be okay. I noticed Pietro looking at me fondly, a small smile on his face. I think he was happy that someone was looking out for her apart from him. I gave a small smile back, but neither one of us seemed to look away. It was odd. We just sort of stayed there...

His eyes were so blue, it was like looking into a sea that wasn't polluted, the ones in movies that have mermaids in them. I tried not to frown as these stupid thoughts went through my mind. I flicked my gaze to Wanda's hand as she squeezed it and held it back tightly in my hand. The landing was surprisingly smooth, Wanda's hand slowly releasing mine as the plane landed. I quickly looked at Pietro, but he was already talking to Sam beside him. I looked at the floor as the plane came to a stop.

"Dibs on the biggest room." Stark said, walking past us all at the exact time that the doors were opening so that he could smoothly exit the helicarrier without needing to stop. I rolled my eyes and followed suit after the others started to leave the helicarrier, heading towards the large building from the landing zone we were on.

The building was incredible, mostly having a glass type structure. _That will be a nightmare to clean._ I hesitantly pushed the see-through doors open and walked inside with the other members of the team. The space was large, but had hardly any furniture in it - there were a few sofas, chairs and tables around the room and a large desk that I guessed was where the reception was. Did we need to sign in there? Maria started leading us over to the elevator. _I guess not._

As we walked over, I heard the room slowly become more silent by the second. I peered round at the spectators who had mostly started walking very slowly to stare. I shifted uncomfortably under their gaze and started to feel my heart beat faster, a familiar feeling brushing over my skin. I felt someone catch my hand and stared at Pietro's hand in mine as we finished walking. He gave me a small smile before letting go and whispering "Just relax. Don't let them get to you." I nodded and waited for the elevator.

The doors opened and I hurried in first, wanting to get away from all the attention. "Ma'am, are you okay?" I found it sweet that he stilled called women ma'am. Not many men were as polite as Captain Rogers were.

I smiled politely at him. "Fine, thank you, Captain. Not really a big fan of...people giving me praise."

Something about his eyes changed then, darkened slightly. Something seemed off about him. I wasn't going to ask him about it as I hardly knew the man, after all, I only meet him yesterday! "You'll get used to it." he said in a slightly solemn fashion. Hopefully, someone would look after this guy. He seemed to be quite damaged.

We arrived at the top floor, the one personally for the Avengers. The communal living room definitely seemed spacious to fit us all. It was much like the helicarrier was actually, but the ceilings had arched edges to give it a modern feel to the room I guessed. There were four large sofas, six chairs and a large white coffee table in the centre. It was all positioned next to four extremely large windows that I could see multi-purposed as sliding doors, leading out to a balcony that had some deck chairs on it as well as another sofa.

"This is going to be your communal living room and joint cinema room." Maria said, pushing a button underneath the table that caused it to slowly move into the ground, a television coming up from the side that the windows were on. As well as that, the coaches rotated to make two rows of cinema sofas. _Sweet!_

I could see the kitchen on the right side of the room also, an island table in the centre that had stools around the edges of it. I frowned at the sight of the cabinets that looked a little high for my reach.

"Obviously, this can all be changed if you want it to be, but hopefully you will find it satisfactory." Maria said as we followed her through to the kitchen. "I'll leave you to explore the place yourselves, but our bedrooms are down this corridor." she said, gesturing to a corridor on the furthest side of the room. "The kitchen can be stocked with whatever food you want most likely within the hour, you can just ask JARVIS. For directions to places that you want to go, like the weapons room, sparring or training rooms and other places around the tower, you can look at the map on the back of your door or, again, just ask JARVIS. Any questions?"

We all remained silent and the smile on her face showed that she was thankful for that. Just as she was about the take us to our rooms, a woman walked through the door. I had no idea who she was. "Elisa." Nat said with a smile and I frowned at her. _Natasha has friends outside of the Avengers?_

"Hey Natasha." she said with a smile. She seemed sweet, but then again, you can't judge a book by its cover. Her brown curly was tied up in a high ponytail, highlighting her thin, make-up free face that showed how much of a natural beauty she was. I felt a little envious of how flawless she seemed. She was dressed in a similar combat suit to Hill's, but she was much smaller than Hill. "It's nice to meet you all." she said, walking over next to Hill.

"I'll let you introduce yourself, Agent." Hill said and the woman nodded, turning to face us with a small, cute smile.

"My name is Agent Elisa Tannen. I'll be Agent Hill's assistant for the foreseeable future, helping you with any problems you have. Any queries, complaints, appointments you need to arrange, social media questions, etc, need to be addressed by me first. I used to be a S.H.I.E.L.D agent and fought during the battle against HYDRA in DC, so I've had plenty of experience. I'm here for you whether you need someone to talk through your problems with or someone to spar with, anything really. I'll be staying in the same quarters as you, like Maria, so hopefully I'll be friends with some of you. Also, my office is next to Hill's if you need anything."

Woah. Calling the girl efficient would be an understatement. She seemed to be so in control of everything. "Are you sure you shouldn't be an agent?" Tony question and her smile faltered slightly. She didn't let it be down for long, a slight faker smile rising on her features.

"I've had my full fill of being an Agent, thank you Stark." she smiled and Hill gestured to the corridor, seemingly knowing that Elisa didn't want to talk about the issue of her being an agent. I wondered why.

"Let me take you through to our rooms." Hill smiled and we walked through the living room to a corridor with rooms on either side. That was when it got a little more interesting...

 **Thank you for reading. Please make sure you review. This takes up a lot of my time and I have so many exams to prepare for, so I would really appreciate a donation in the little box below :P THANK YOU!**


	10. Bunk-beds

**Hello, all readers! Thank you for putting up with my late updates. My exams start in 4 DAYS TIME so obviously, I'm scared as hell. I've been writing this in car rides and such whenever I have time that I'm not revising. Hopefully, you'll like it.**

 **Response to reviews:**

 **Winter-Soldier88 - Thank you very much for your name suggestions. If you look at the poll on my page, they have been taken into account. They are fantastic! Thank you for submitting them!**

 **Howling2themoon - You are such a faithful reviewer, thank you so much! Thank you for appreciating the stress :P Some people just don't get it. Good luck with your exams too and thank you for the review.**

 **FangedMe - Thank you so much for the review :) I like your nickname, reminds me of a vampire!**

 **Charlouchua5 - Had to double check if I spelt your name right! Haha! Thank you :) I'm glad you like Wanda's character**

 **Quicksilver1 - I literally get so happy when you review, because the reviews are so long and it just shows how much you appreciate my work. Honestly, I love you so much! Hanging from the balcony, oddly, seemed like something that her character would do. She's a bit of a crazy nut. I honestly appreciate you so much. THANK YOU!**

 **IMPORTANT NOTICE:**

 **There is a POLL on my page that is to do with Riley's name. Choose your vote wisely. It ends in a couple of weeks so get your vote in quick.**

 **You guys deserved a new chapter :)**

"Sharing?"

The corridor divided the rooms, symbols on the doors representing each existing Avenger, just like the helicarrier did. Hill had explained how we were meant to meet her in the living room at 10 am. Hill had explained that we could shower and look around if we wanted to. What Hill didn't explain was the reason why I was sharing a room with Pietro.

"Is that a problem?" Hill asked expectantly, folding her arms as everyone else stood outside their doors. I shook my head, not wanting to cause a fuss, especially in front of everyone. I'm sure I would get used to sharing with a male. I had done it on missions before, but I usually knew the person more. I sheepishly smiled up at Pietro who just whispered: "Looks like you're stuck with me, shorty."

I glared at him playfully and he nudged my arm before our attention was drawn to Hill who spoke up. "I'll see you all at 10 sharp." She said, potently looking at Stark. He grumbled something and rolled his eyes, but Hill continued. "Unpack your belongings, if you need anything then tell JARVIS and see you in an hour and a bit."

Landing and making our way up to the suite had taken a while, it now being 9 am. We had an hour basically before we had to convene in the living room.

"Moving in together?" Pietro asked, speedily opening the door and leaning against its frame. "This relationship is moving fast." I guffawed and slap him on the chest, blushing slightly at the fact that my laugh was so embarrassing. I rolled my eyes as I pushed him out the way and ducked under his arm to enter the room. Why am I such an awkward person sometimes?

The first thing I noticed were the huge glass windows, a balcony showing a beautiful view of the surrounding grounds of the facility. It was such a beautiful location. I bet the sunsets on the roof were amazing. The place was surrounded by beautiful, green trees, which was refreshing considering S.H.I.E.L.D and the Avengers were usually based in a city. The area was so spacious you could probably freely dance in it.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the small kitchen that Hill said we could use if we didn't feel like going to the communal one. I looked across on the other side of the room and nearly smiled in delight. Pietro began to speak, but I was too distracted. "I can sleep on the floor i-"

"Oh my God!" I squealed, running up to the bunk beds that were on the furthest side. I jumped up, pushing my feet against the wall to propel myself onto the top bunk bed. Obviously, I wasn't perfect with my aim, but I'd trained my body to get to places no one thought a body was able to reach. "I love bunk beds." I sighed, sinking into the impossibly comfortable duvet and clinging my hands onto it.

I opened my eyes and quickly looked over at him from my high position, hoping that he didn't think he'd been stuck sleeping with someone crazy. "What?" I asked at his slightly curious expression. He slowly smirked and winked at me. There was something incredibly sexy about it that I didn't know what to do with, so as usual, I ended up blushing like an idiot.

"You're cute," he replied, which only made me blush even more. Luckily, he didn't see me turn completely beetroot as he sped onto the bottom bunk bed below me.

After ten seconds of silence, I made the executive decision that I couldn't just sit here and do nothing for the next hour waiting until 10 when we were meant to meet everyone again.

I shuffled to the section of the bed that wasn't barriered up and jumped down, landing firmly on my feet. I turned to him, only to notice he wasn't there anymore, but actually putting clothes in his closet. "I wish I could speed my clothes into my closet too," I told him, half wishing it were true. It would save a lot of time.

He smirked at me with a boyish grin and quickly sped away. Blue flashes went to and fro from where his suitcases lay by the door. It made me feel a little dizzy for a while. Thankfully, he stopped before I reached the stage where I felt like I was going to pass out from the blurs he was giving off, the blue energy he had created quickly dissipating into the floor. I looked at the closet that was now full of his stuff. I huffed at the fact that he didn't even look tired.

"Have fun unpacking your stuff," he told me with a slightly singing tone to his voice. My glare at him was genuine this time, jealous of the powers he possessed. He ignored me as he leapt over the couch and laid down, relaxing as all of his items were put away and his suitcase was empty.

I sighed and walked over to my suitcase, preparing myself for the next half of unpacking I would do. "Unless you want me to do i-"

"Nope!" I cut off that sly suggestion immediately, remembering the thongs that I had packed that I 1000% did not want him to see.

We didn't talk for a while. I had rolled my suitcase over to the other closet that was next to Pietro's and had unpacked most of my stuff before we started another conversation. I didn't mind the silence and it wasn't awkward, something that comforted me.

"Have you thought more about the name?" He asked from his place on the sofa. He had zoomed around a bit, getting a snack from the kitchen, but apart from that, he hadn't moved from the sofa.

"What name? My superhero name you mean?" I asked, putting a crop top into one of the drawers. I looked back down at my suitcase, very happy that I had managed to sneak my underwear into the fourth drawer without him making some snide comment about me.

"Yeah, I'm not sure. Maybe something to do with a ghost? Because I'm invisible, you know?" He just kinda nodded slowly as he laid his arms across the back of the sofa.

"No shit." He deadpanned and I managed to control my laugh a little more than last time. I rolled my eyes as I put my last items into the chest of drawers. I smiled to myself as I zipped up my bag, happy that I was unpacked. I didn't have that much stuff so there was lots of room left in my drawers and the bathroom cabinet, but that just meant I had a lot of room for other things.

I looked at the time and frowned when I realised I only had about fifteen minutes before the meeting. I had taken longer than I wanted to at unpacking, though I had spent some time in the bathroom looking around. It was very posh, but I was excited most about the shower that had sprays coming down from the ceiling.

I decided to go into the bathroom to change, not wanting Pietro's eyes peering at me, invisible or not. Thankfully, he didn't mention anything about changing in front of him if I wanted to. Pietro wasn't THAT big of an ass.

I walked out and saw him leaning against the fridge, mid-bite into an apple when he stopped as he looked at what I was wearing. He raised and eyebrow at me and I looked down at what I was wearing. I pulled the skirt down a little, feeling a little self-conscious under his gaze.

"Interesting style choice," he said and I could've sworn I saw him smile slightly. I looked at my outfit - a black tank top with a plaid miniskirt and knee high socks. It was a little immature, but I liked it. Maybe the skirt was a little high, but that didn't concern me.

"Yeah, is that a problem?" I questioned to which he immediately put his hands up in innocence, probably not wanting a kick in the balls from me for questioning my fashion choice.

"No, but is it practical?" he said, finishing the bite of the apple he started.

"I'm gonna fight in what I'm most comfortable with." I pulled up my skirt and he immediately turned around.

"Jesus, what are you doing?" he exclaimed, remaining to face the other way. I laughed at him turning his back, chivalry not being one of the traits I though Pietro would have. Perhaps I was wrong.

"Showing you my shorts, you dufus. Just in case they want us to do anything extravagant like training." I explained and he hesitated for a moment before he turned around to look at the shorts I was wearing under the mini skirt. His expression went into one of realisation, and slight relief, and he shook his head, laughing to himself slightly.

I reached up and ruffled his hair, much to his dissatisfaction. "Let's go, dufus," I said, pushing off his head to walk towards the door. There was a gush of wind as he sped past me to open the door. I glared at him as I took the hairband off my wrist and started doing my hair up.

"You're the dufus." He retorted and stuck out his tongue playfully. I rolled my eyes and let him shut the door behind us as we headed for the living room.

We arrived, most people already sitting in the room. I took my place next to Wanda and smiled. 'That's a cute outfit.' She said through her mind, nudging my shoulder and winking.

I rolled my eyes and gave her a look. 'Your brother didn't.' She looked at Pietro who wasn't paying any attention to either of us, talking to Steve about something. She looked back at me.

'Ignore Pietro. He's a _pula_ sometimes' She laughed a little at Pietro who was oblivious to her giggles.

'What does that mean?' I asked and she looked at me slyly. I could speak a little Sokovian but I was never fluent. I found the language beautiful, but I found learning it quite difficult.

"I mean that he's a dick sometimes," she whispered aloud. We laughed quietly to ourselves as Hill entered the room with Fury. We immediately shut up when we saw him, both of us observing them with sceptical eyes. I never liked Fury, Hill was much better, but trust was something I didn't have with either of them.

"Avengers..." Fury announced as he approached us, settling next to the chair Clint was sitting on. "Let it be clear that I am not here to lead you." I mentally scoffed at that and I saw Wanda smirk out of the corner of my eye. "I am here to assist and guide you if you need doing so."

"If you need to get through Fury, you can go through me," Hill said, stepping forward slightly. "I have a plan for today if everyone is in agreement. Steve and I will observe your skills, finding out each person's limits and strengths. Today will be considered as our first day of training. Does everyone agree on this plan?"

All of us nodded and she gave a small smile. "Good," she said, pleased that no one had objected to her plans. "The Captain and I will take notes then." She said, giving a brief nod to the man. "If the other current Avengers want to be there, then they can be, but otherwise you can rest or train."

She looked around at me, assessing what we were wearing. Her eyes focused on me. Straight. "Can you fight in that? The others are wearing suitable attire for training. "We can wait if you want to change." Her suggestion wasn't forced but wasn't polite either. I didn't know what to make of Hill. I think I could trust her, but wouldn't push my luck.

I shook my head. "I'm wearing training shorts underneath and I'm perfectly capable of fighting in this," I explained, something that some of the men in the room seemed to be relieved about also.

She nodded curtly and said, "Let's go." We all followed her as she walked out of the living room and towards the room where our powers were going to be analysed by Hill and the Captain. I followed behind Wanda as we walked towards the room down a corridor surrounded by glass windows. I hadn't had the chance to explore the facility properly yet.

I could see the green fields expand out towards the broccoli shaped trees that surrounded the area. Brocolli trees...I liked that term. The sun was shining over the fields, people fighting below on the ground in the heat. I could tell from far away that they were only beginners, just learning to pick up their fighting skills.

"Here we are," she said as we came to a stop outside a door in the corridor. Instead of glass, there was just a long wall, hiding the rooms inside from sight. There was a small window in the door, but that was it.

"This room is for your private use. Avengers only. You can invite people in if you wish but at your own risk. If they are irritating and play their music too loud, I will kick their ass out." She smiled in an overly fake manner and entered the training area, holding the door open for us. I was starting to like Hill a bit more. She actually did have a sense of humour.

The room was humongous, the ceiling stretching ridiculously high. Because we had entered from the top floor, we were looking down on the room. I could see at the end of the room was a gym that had several punch bags. I smiled to myself at the sight. I did love boxing.

There were three boxing rings as well as sparring mats, but the thing that confused me was the black tape in the shape of a rectangle that covered half of the flooring, an entire area made for...something.

"As you can see, you have your own gym, boxing rings and sparring mats. The perimeter is the holographic simulator Stark helped to develop." I tried to ignore the smug look that Tony wore as we walked down towards the bottom level.

"It gives the user the feeling that they are experiencing the battle. Very effective on the tests that we've done." Hill explained, stepping next to the control panel that was there. "Jungle, city, country, choose whichever you like. The weapons you have, the number of enemies, the type of enemies, the level of difficulty. You can manipulate it as you please."

There was also a raised platform that split the holographic simulator from the mats, rings and the gym. It was for two people to have their own matches on, we all knew that. She came to a stop next to it. I only now realised that Fury wasn't with her. How the hell did he disappear like that?

"Now, the order today is Pietro, Wanda, Riley and then Vision. We already have training specs on Sam and Rhodey. So, Pietro..." she said, inclining her head to him. "I want to know how many laps you can do in five minutes. A counter is already set on the walls."

He took off his coat and went to the side of the room. "Ready when you are," he called, with a smirk. He winked at me before Hill told him to start running. I felt the gusts of the wind from where he ran past us each time, but after the two-minute mark, I was used to it. I was fascinated by the blue light he emitted that was now a constant ring around the room, Pietro's actual body figure disappearing due to his high speed.

I found him a fascinating, beautiful creature. There was something about his personality that really hooked me. He could be too flirty sometimes, but he genuinely seemed like one of the good guys. Bodies weren't what I was attracted to, it was the personality, but Pietro did have a hell of a body on him. The tight running clothes didn't hide a thing and I may have casually looked at his eight pack for a few seconds or so. I admired him for keeping it to in shape. His body was a temple. I felt myself get a little hotter when I wondered what it would be like to have sex with someone who had all those muscles. I shook my head and tried to push that image as far away from my mind as possible. He was my roommate, NOT an opportunity for a boyfriend. Romantic partnerships were seriously frowned upon in S.H.I.E.L.D and most likely in the Avengers too.

"Do you like my brother?" Wanda asked me suddenly and I felt my cheeks redden, wondering whether she had heard all those thoughts I just had.

"No, I hardly know Pietro," I responded and tried to keep my eyes forward, not wanting the conversation to continue.

"I didn't read your mind if you're wondering." She added and I refrained from sighing in relief. It would be awkward for her to know the thought I just had, even though it was brief. "But you know I can measure heartbeats, right?"

"STOP!" I heard Hill shout and suddenly Pietro was next to us, sitting with his back against the raised platform and gasping for air. She looked at her iPad as the data came through.

She showed Steve and he nodded. "234 laps. Very impressive."

"I can hardly do two in that time." I chimed and everyone seemed to laugh, except Hill who just continued to write down her notes. Even though I was lying about being able to do two, I wouldn't be able to do much more than that.

Wanda and I walked over to Pietro who was still breathless. "You okay?" I asked as Wanda crouched next to him. I looked at him from above as he nodded and placed a hand on Wanda's arm.

"I'm fine," he replied, moving his hand off Wanda and pushing himself up from the floor. "Just never run that far for so long before without a break."

He calmed down after half a minute and just sounded a little puffed out after a while. "Wanda, you're next!" Hill shouted and Wanda nodded before standing in front of the woman. Hill was doing a lot of the controlling, though Steve didn't seem to mind. He actually looked quite tired and was obviously deeply pondering about something. It was odd to see him so sad because on television he would always have a smile. Maybe he was just putting on a brave face for whatever he was trying to hide.

"What do you want me to do?" She asked, standing in front of Steve and Maria.

I looked over at Pietro who was still gaining his normal breathing back. He looked at me and I immediately turned away, not wanting to be caught in some kind of stare off. He nudged my shoulder and I looked over to see what he wanted. He smiled, not in a boyish, hitting on me fashion either. It was more sincere than that. It was the type of smile that made me want to smile too.

"Don't worry about me, short stuff. I'm fine," he whispered, not winking at me or smirking like he had in the past. Well...I say the past, we had only known each other for a day. I had come to know a lot about him though.

"I wasn't," I said, nudging him back. He smiled at me momentarily before focusing on Wanda. He was a distraction for me really, but I didn't mind. It was nice. I didn't really have distractions. He felt like a luxury to me sometimes, a guilty pleasure of some kind, but I knew it would be bad to indulge in something or someone that made me happy. Pietro and I weren't that close yet, but I knew if I did feel close to him, I would need to limit myself. I don't even know how I would deal with that kind of relationship, having never really experienced one apart from in the HYDRA facility. However, that was a HYDRA facility, not freedom like I had now.

"We know that you can move objects, tear things apart. We want you to fly." We all went silent for a second and turned our heads at Wanda and Hill. Steve even looked a little shocked at the suggestion.

"What?" Wanda asked, looking flabbergasted at her words. I could sense her self-doubt and I didn't even need to abilities she had. I could sense it.

"Obviously, you wouldn't be able to get their straight away though," Steve said. His words were meant to be reassuring but seemed subconsciously doubtful. He gave her a smile, but that didn't give any further reassurance to Wanda.

"I don't...how am I supposed to try and do that?" she questioned, looking at her hands that were now swarming with red whispers.

This time Natasha spoke up instead of Hill. "My suggestion is that you act as if you are the object that is being propelled off the ground. Or push your powers towards the floor and act as the turbine to a rocket, propelling yourself up."

Wanda looked sceptically at Natasha, but she just gave a small smile to the Sokovian woman. Maybe Natasha had a soft spot for the girl because she didn't smile at many people. It was quiet as Wanda took a couple of steps back before positioning her hands by her sides, her energy slowly moving towards the ground.

She looked at her brother who smiled encouragingly at her. She then looked at me. I nodded and she smiled, her eyes glowing as she smirked at me before slowing rising off of the ground. It was only a couple of centimetres as she was doing it.

"Sfinte rahat..." Pietro whispered, stepping forward as he watched her sister rise towards the ceiling. She was only a metre up when she stopped there and kept herself at that level. Her mouth was wide open, gasping slightly, as she stared down at the floor.

"Woah..." she said, amazed at what she'd been able to do as she skillfully balanced herself to stay upright. If she could do this, what else could she do?

Tony quickly pulled out his phone and took a photo of her, something that Wanda gave him a glare for afterwards. "Hashtag new abilities, hashtag day one, hashtag Avengers, hashtag awesome," he said, his phone clicking from his letter entries.

I rolled my eyes and focused back on Wanda who was lowering herself back to the floor. She took a few shaky breaths before she smiled, giggling slightly. "I can levitate," she said excitedly and I could tell she was resisting jumping up and down.

"And hopefully, with practice, you'll be able to do more than just that," Steve said, standing beside Hill as she took down notes.

"I need more strength, build up my muscles," Wanda said, shaking her arms off to loosen them. "I won't get much better if I'm this weak."

"I can help you with that," Natasha said to Wanda. Natasha looked like she was planning something. She was probably already planning Wanda's eating and weight lifting plan.

"Great," Wanda replied, smiling at the woman who slightly scared all of us.

"Right, now for our newbie," Hill said, turning her critical gaze to me. Hill was the same species as Natasha - scary, but brilliant. I stepped to stand in front of Steve and Maria, awaiting their instructions.

"We don't know much about your abilities apart from invisibility, but we have a suggestion." She walked towards the raised platform and reached behind one side of it, bringing out a black cube that she placed on the floor.

"We would like you to make it invisible." Easy. I walked towards the block to sit down and reached out my hand, but she told me to stop.

"Without touching it," she said from above me. I furrowed my eyebrows and stubbornly put my hand back to my side. I focused on the object and tried to push my energy out towards it, a contracting feeling happening in my chest.

I felt myself reaching towards it in my mind and saw the edges of it begin to become invisible. It was like it was crawling towards the centre of the block and after about twenty seconds, the block was consumed into nothingness, shielded by my powers to turn invisible.

Even though I was pleased with myself, I did feel drained. I stopped my energy spreading and felt the sweat on the back of my neck and over my body cling to my clothes. I wasn't dripping in sweat, it was light, but I still felt a bit hot and sticky.

"Very good." Steve praised and I looked up at him with a smile, feeling proud that I had mastered something new.

"Do you find it easier to shield something when you are touching it then?" Hill asked and I simply picked up the block, immediately turning it invisible without showing any effort. Moving my energy from my body seemed to take a lot of energy out of me, but a part of me felt really good about it.

"I guess that answers my question," she said and typed something into her computer, notes on my abilities most likely.

"You alright?" Pietro asked, coming over to me and offering a hand to stand. I smiled and took it, nodding my head.

"Yeah. I learnt something about my powers, so that's great." I said, speaking to Pietro and also Wanda who was also walking over to me. They were cute as twins, in sync.

"I have a feeling we are gonna learn a lot of new things while we are here," Wanda said, smiling at the room we were in like it was the place where our future was going to be built upon. It probably was.

"Good." I wanted to be a stronger person, a better person. Expanding my powers would help achieve that.

 **If you didn't read above, I have exams starting and would really appreciate a comment on my work. Thank you all for following this story. It's been great writing it so far and I have so many ideas planned. I mean like...pages and pages worth of notes.**

 **Once again, if you didn't see in the start notes, look on my page for the name poll. Your Riley, your choice :)**

 **THANK YOOOOUUUU! Feed me in the review box below!**


	11. Revelations

**A/N - the poll has closed and you will find out the superhero name for Riley in this chapter. As said in my other stories, my mother is struggling greatly with cancer at the minute and needs a lot of help with her left hand side. It's much like someone who has had a stroke and lost the use of their left side. It's very difficult, physically for her and emotionally for all of us, so please forgive me if my updates are late. Thank you.**

 **Response to reviews:**

 **Princess2017 - Obviously in the future they will admit the feelings they have for each other, but I'm planning on making it a slow burn. Thank you for the review!**

 **Scarlet3Wolf12 - I shall continue the story and I will try to post as frequently as possible**

 **Woah - Interesting name, Woah :P Thank you very much. My exams went okay, I'm just waiting on the results now. I will never give up on the stories I start without giving lots of notice.**

The challenges were continued to be fired around the room. I intently watched as Wanda using her powers to try and run faster, propelling herself forward to gain speed. It wasn't perfect, but it was a start. She practically stumbled as she came to a stop and I saw Pietro quickly dash over to her, my hair being messed up yet again by his super speed. I made a mental note to check over his injuries again later to make sure that they had fully healed with no side effect.

Maria was taking notes on her clipboard as Wanda and Pietro came back over to the group, Wanda grinning wildly at me. "That was incredible," she said, a smile beaming on her face. I was happy that she had felt herself improving over the course of the assessment with Steve and Maria, not that Steve seemed like he was very excited to be there. He looked distracted, as if he had more troubling matters on his mind, but Hill seemed to be fully focused on what was going on.

"Riley again, please," Hill called and I nodded, walking forward towards where her and Steve stood. She wasn't saying anything. Why wasn't she saying anything? She hadn't given me any instructions yet, but had been staring at me with curiosity for quite a while. I looked from her to Steve and back to her again.

"What?" I asked as she looked me up and down, analysing...something?

"How do you feel about the Phantom as your hero name?" she asked, crossing her arms across her chest as she addressed me directly.

"Like a ghost? I get it," I said, nodding to myself as I considered the name. It seemed a little daunting, but I felt myself warming towards the name. I nodded. "I like it."

"Good," she said, smiling and picking up her clipboard again, writing something down on it. Steve was still stood behind her, not really concentrating on what was going on. "Next test, would you be able to make your body disappear but not your clothes?"

I followed her orders, concentrating hard to not let my clothes get affected by powers. I took a breath and let my invisibility spread across my skin, feeling blissfully submerged by my powers. I felt a whoosh of air cross over my back, but I didn't let it affect my control.

"Can you make the clothes disappear and not the body?" Pietro muttered from behind me as I let my invisibility fade from my skin. I glared at him as he smirked at me, Wanda coming up to smack him over the head with her hand.

"Moron," she scolded as he rubbed the patch on his head that she hit, scowling at his sister. He deserved it. After testing Sam, James and Vision, Steve decided to split us into our pairs, me ultimately having to go with Pietro. I was getting used to him being my partner, the Sokovian being very cheeky, but equally likeable. I would definitely have fun with him.

"You've all sparred before, but never with these pairings. Have a go, if it doesn't work...well, I'll be surprised," Steve said blandly as he gestured for us to begin. We were each on our own mats, all given a lot of space to spar with.

Pietro and I walked to our own mats, eyeing each other up as we were locked in an intense gaze, Pietro not taking anything seriously and smirking. "You worried that I'm gonna beat you?"

It was my turn to smirk then as I confidently replied; "Not in the slightest."

Then we began. I was the first one to move, sprinting towards him with complete focus to attack him. He immediately went to attack my waist, but went lower, forcing his legs out from under him. He quickly recovered by doing a forward roll, pushing himself upright before turning around to face me again.

His expression was darker, not wanting to be defeated by me. Over the next half an hour, we exchanged punches, threw kicks and I definitely got completely and utterly bruised. I sighed as I flopped against the floor, Steve stating that the sparring was over and we were to take a break.

"Learn to trust the partner you are with." I heard him say as I leant on my elbows to look at him. "You'll be with them...for a long time." I didn't understand what was going on with Steve. His head seemed completely out of the game, which didn't seem a great trait for a leader to have. It was obvious that his unfocused mind was affecting the way he worked.

"You'll be spending weeks working together, which means that you will have to get used to each other. Talking might be a good start," Hill replied, smirking.

"Unless you want to be boring," Natasha joked and Clint chuckled from beside her. I noticed James and Sam fist bump, a relationship bond that I hoped I would have with Pietro at some point.

I noticed Maria look towards Steve before looking back at the group. "Let's take a break for lunch and spend the rest of the day doing what you wish, whether it be training, sparring or getting to know each other. Remember that the private party is tonight before the public party with the whole building tomorrow, so make sure that you find some things to wear."

"Can we turn up in sweats?" Clint asked. Natasha punched his shoulder lightly, Clint backing away in pretend pain with a smile on his face. He shrugged at her as if to say it was a fair question.

Maria just rolled her eyes and smirked at the archer. "Definitely not." Clint gave her a thumbs down with pouted lips, but he just smiled at her. "Dress smart. You can be sluttier for tonight's party, but tomorrow night's needs to be a little smarter for the photographers that will be there as well as the staff that are here who will undoubtedly post on social media. I know you'll ignore my advice Nat," she said, glancing over to her. "But try and keep it on the down low?"

She shrugged with a knowing smile on her face. "Can't promise anything," she said as her and Clint walked out of the room together. I smirked at her teasing nature and turned to Pietro, raising an eyebrow.

"Lunch?" I asked and that smug smile of his came onto his face.

"Is that a date?"

Fucking men. I scoffed and rolled my eyes at the player. "Fat chance, hot head," I replied, making my way to walk out of my room.

"Can we have it in our room?" That sounded weird coming from his lips. 'Our room'. I'd never shared before, especially not when I was experimented on by HYDRA.

"Yeah," I replied quietly as we made our way towards our room, thoughts spinning through my head. We had to be selfish in the facility in order to survive, putting ourselves above others, which meant that things weren't shared. Would I be able to deal with sharing a room with Pietro? What would happen if I freaked out and couldn't deal with it or-

"Are you okay?" I quickly turned my head to see Pietro frowning at me. He was holding the door open, waiting for me to walk through, but I had stopped outside the door, my memories playing over in my mind. I was about to say that I was fine, but he held his hand out to me. "Do you want to talk inside?"

I looked into his concerned eyes and nodded slowly, taking his hand to walk into the room with him. He squeezed it gently and shut the door behind us as he led us over to the sofa. I didn't know why I felt so comfortable taking his hand, letting him walk me over to sit down. He didn't let go as we sat down together. There was something about him that made me feel comforted. Sure, we could laugh together, but so far he seemed like a genuinely nice person.

Pietro was a smart-ass for sure, the smart part of that being questionable. But he was kind as well as charming, even though he made too many moves on me. I felt like I could actually share what was going on in my mind with him. I didn't often trust people as soon as I met them, but there was a certain ease that allowed me to be comfortable with him.

"So..." he began, stroking his thumb against the back of my hand, small tingles travelling up my arm. How could someone make me feel comfortable and nervous at the same time? It was a weird sensation. "What's wrong?" There wasn't much to tell him and it wasn't like it was something important

He looked at me, waiting for me to share, and I felt slightly ashamed of what I was going to share, moving my eye line away from his. "My childhood...obviously wasn't the best. I never shared anything with anyone."

"I'm used to it, I've shared my whole life." I couldn't imagine spending my whole childhood with someone, being the only one to care for that person too as the twins didn't have parents from the age of 10 onwards.

"I don't know...if I'm ready for it, you know?" I said hesitantly, looking up at him with a nervous gaze, hoping he wouldn't be mad. He didn't seem angry, which was good. "Obviously in S.H.I.E.L.D, there was a little more sharing to be done," I said, mumbling. "No offense or anything, I t-think it's really nice how open you're being and welcoming of me and everything, you know? I've never shared a room with only one other person and I'm just worried I won't like it or you won't like living with me or-"

"Try it," he said simply, his voice calm, relaxing me and dragging me out of my slightly crazed state of mind. "If you don't like it, you can leave and have your own room, it's okay to do so," he said. I nodded and focused my eyeline on the ground, my mind still worrying about the concept of sharing a room with someone. "I have a feeling that I'm not the thing that's troubling you."

I grimaced and shifted on the sofa. I didn't realise until I pulled my hand back to fiddle with one of the couch cushions that my hand had rested in Pietro's over the duration of our conversation. That realisation made me fiddle with the cushion tassels even more. "As I said, we never shared things. We were lone wolves that were practically thrown to the lions during our HYDRA holiday," I replied with a scoffed.

I nervously gulped as I continued, my mind slowly being taken over by my memories. "We weren't meant to make any connections with anyone," I said, pursing my lips as the thought of that person I did make a connection with came to my mind.

"You did?" he asked, reading my words and understanding that I broke HYDRA's rules when I was captive.

I nodded. If I had to share with my partner, then I would have to tell him everything. "You heard of the Winter Soldier?" I asked and Pietro's head immediately shot up to attention. Obviously he recognised the name.

His alertness relaxed a little as he replied "Who hasn't?"

I licked my lips as I thought back to the memories we had shared together. "He came to my cell whenever he could, after missions, training sessions, but would always remain undetected." I bit my lip as I tried to hold it together and not get emotional. "But one day that changed..."

 _"Is your arm okay?" he asked, sitting down gently next to me on the creaky bed. The cell was small and his large frame looked abnormal inside it. He was hunched over slightly, his brows creasing as he frowned at the blooded arm I had hurt on the mission I had completed little over an hour ago._

 _"Aches a little, but it's stopped bleeding at least," I replied, looking up at him. I saw the small smirk on his face as he looked at me. Something about that look always made me feel a little weaker. I liked the soldier when he was like this, when he hadn't been brainwashed in so long that he trusted me more than usual and remembered the side of him that made him more like Bucky Barnes._

 _"D'you ever think we'll be sitting like this in the outside world one day?" he asked, looking around the walls of my cell with curiosity._

 _"What? Me and you?" I asked, my voice shifting about an octave higher than it was supposed to be at. Was he saying what I thought he was?_

 _"Yeah," he whispered close to me with a small smirk on his lips. We were close now, his warm breaths tickling my cheeks. He was slightly taller than me, so his head was slightly above mine, but I didn't feel pressured by that. It felt comforting to have him protective over me._

 _"Hopefully we'll be doing a lot more than sitting," I teased, testing the waters, wondering if he felt the same way that I did. The side glances, the little touches he gave when we met, the cheeky smirks that accompanied his actions. He smiled a his human hand came up to stroke my cheek, his calloused fingers brushing my skin._

 _"Me too," he replied, not taking a second longer to press his lips against mine in a movement that was fast but tender at the same time. I had been through so much horror, so much brutality, that the simple act of passion made me feel complete. His lips were warm, his fingers soft and his intent pure._

 _I had kissed a few people, only slept with one or two of them, but none of them could make me feel anything that Bucky was making me feel. The kiss was short, only a few seconds, but it was perfect. We pulled our lips away and put our foreheads together, both of us equally breathless. I laughed nervously and he reached his other hand up, the metal one, to place on my cheek._

 _His hand was cold as it cupped the other side of my cheek, both hands stroking me as I opened my eyes. He was staring at me, looking so vulnerable in that moment. "You're so beautiful," he whispered, making me smile shyly as he came to kiss me again._

 _Suddenly, there was a loud slam. I jumped away from Bucky as I looked over to see the cell doors swing open, six armed HYDRA agents come into the small cell. "No," I whispered as they came over to take Bucky who was just standing next to the bed, allowing the HYDRA agents to take him away. Two agents grabbed me on each arm, probably leaving bruises in their wake as they dragged me to the side of the cell. I shut up after that, watching as the other two grabbed Bucky, leaving the last two standing on either side of my cell doors._

 _Before they led him out of the cell, the head of HYDRA walked through the doors in a suit of all things. My breathing picked up and I shuffled back slightly as he entered. I was scared of him, everyone was. Bucky didn't look as affected, but I knew he was frightened as I was. If we weren't dead, I knew we would be seriously punished. Bucky was too valuable to be killed, but I wasn't so sure about me._

 _"You think you could fool us?" he said, looking down from above me. He slowly walked over, a disgusted look on his face. I noticed Bucky struggle against the guards as Ivan met my face, so close that I could feel his breath against my face. "Never..." he growled before looking across to his guards and nodding._

 _I watched as Bucky was taken out and I resisted the hold of the agent's as they took him away. I caught his eyes as he left, those sad, sad eyes, and saw his frightened expression as they took him away to be mind wiped again._

"And that was the last time I saw him in person," I said, finishing my story and slumping back against the sofa. I was resisting the tight feeling in my throat that I knew if I subsided too that I would be subdued to tears.

"Did they punish you?" he asked, making me flinch and look up at him. I completely forgot that I was discussing it with Pietro, more like I was going over my memories with myself. I hadn't thought about it in so long. I always tried to block it from my mind.

"The usual really, beatings and...other stuff," I said, shrugging, hoping that I didn't have to explain any further. Pietro nodded grimly, but I could tell he was thinking about something.

"Do you think about him a lot?" he asked and I shook my head.

"I try to block it out most of the time," I told him, looking out at the trees that were outside the windows. "I...I don't think it was love. I feel like part of it might have been Stockholm syndrome. Bucky was all I had at the time." I felt nostalgia crawl over my skin as I thought on what our relationship meant. I don't think we had the ability to love in that place, but I cared about him. Genuinely.

"Are you going to tell the Captain?" he questioned. I had considered it when I was telling the story to all the Avengers, but didn't see how it would help anything.

"I don't see the point," I said shrugging as I pulled my knees to my chest. "It wouldn't change anything and I doubt that Bucky would even remember me anyway."

"Did you try to find him?" He wouldn't take his gaze off of me and I finally gave in and looked up at him when he asked that question. It wasn't just a question, it was interest.

"A few times, but I gave up in the end. He didn't want to be found, still doesn't," I replied, my voice steady and emotionless. "But I don't care about him romantically. I just hope he's okay."

Pietro smiled at me sympathetically and placed his hand on mine again. "Me too," he said in a quieter tone of voice, sounding sympathetic. I didn't think much about what he said, more of his accent. I liked Pietro's accent, it really suited him. The language seemed awfully complex to learn.

"Have you had any relationships since then?" he asked in a slightly shy manner. Pietro was cute - his ruffled hair, scruffy voice and beautiful eyes were three things that really stood out to me in that moment. I took a breathe and let those distractions fade away as I gave my answer.

"Not really. I've kissed a few agents, but I've never...done anything else with anyone," I said with hesitation, hoping that he wouldn't laugh at me for not being a virgin. Well, in the sense of the real way of having sex where _both_ parties want to do it.

"If it makes you feel better, I haven't done the deed either," he admitted, not looking embarrassed about the subject like I was. Pietro like the type of guy to flirt with everyone, so the fact he had never slept with anyone surprised me.

"I...I have done it, but...it wasn't..." I said hesitantly. "It happened during my time at HYDRA," I said and by his angry expression I could see that he understood exactly what I meant. It was odd to see him angry, it reminded me of when I explained to the team about my torture in HYDRA. "Anyway, you haven't slept with anyone?" I asked, hoping that we could swiftly move over the subject.

"I've had little things in the past, but nothing serious," he said shrugging.

"I thought you were meant to be a player?" He smirked and chuckled to himself as his hand shifted slightly up my leg. I didn't know whether he realised what he was doing, but part of me liked it.

He shook his head. "I could never sleep with someone that I wasn't sure I could spend the rest of my life with." He sounded so honest and so mature. Many men were only interested in sex and people's looks, but Pietro's intentions seemed completely pure. A true gentleman. I liked it.

"That's very...traditional," I teased, smirking as I watched him laugh, his face going red slightly as he felt embarrassment about his traditional values.

"It's not like I won't have sex before marriage, but I want the person I sleep with to be someone I want to spend my life with," he explained, saying it quietly as if I would judge him massively for it.

"Very romantic," I said, more to myself than to Pietro. I was glad he heard it so that he didn't feel embarrassed about his way of thinking about relationships. I thought it was cute.

"That's me," he replied with a wink, but it was more sweet than flirtatious. I smiled to myself as I watched his thumb stroke my leg. He smiled before looking out the window, but I couldn't take my gaze off him? How could my partner be a mix of buff, intelligent and sweet? He was pretty much perfect.

"What are you looking at?" he asked, a small smirk on his lips as he slowly rolled his head to look at me.

"Nothing," I replied quickly, turning my head to look out the window. I'd forgotten his one fault of being arrogant.

 **Sorry this chapter is kinda shorted than my other ones, but I kinda wanted to end it here. I haven't checked over my work so I'm sorry if there are any mistakes! Please give a review if you wish ;)**


	12. Dinner and Bubbles

**Response to reviews:**

 **Howling2themoon - Thank you so much. I'm really glad you like it! It's always touching to see your name as you always review! Thank you!**

 **Princess2017 - They shall get together soon, I promise. Yeah, Riley has been through a lot of shit.**

 _Focus...just focus. You can do this. You can prove yourself._ The thoughts flew through my mind, right up until the point where Natasha hit my square in the face as we sparred, sending me straight to the floor. I groaned when the other side of my face hit the mats. _Fuck!_

Before I pushed myself up, I clocked the looks that the other Avengers were giving me - most of them being sympathetic, but some were smirking...Clint and Pietro of course. I rolled my eyes and got to my feet, waiting for Natasha's pep talk.

"Well, that was shit," she noted, crossing her arms across her chest as I brushed myself down.

I scowled at the smug look on her face. "I understand that," I deadpanned, putting my hands on my hips. "Go on, what did I do wrong?"

She smirked and then proceeded to explain. "When you spar, when you fight, you need to be completely in the zone. Letting distractions come into your head for even a second makes room for hesitation, consequently making room for mistakes. Confidence in battle is the upmost important thing, but not too much. Too much can get you killed. As you train, as you train properly with us anyway, you'll learn the right balance between both. I've seen previous footage of you and it is obvious how hesitant you are. Not personal, just speaking the truth. You need to toughen up. Don't think about what you are doing, just do it. If you are going to think about something, think about the precision of your punch and your target's weaknesses. Psyching yourself up should be done before a mission, not during."

It was critical, but she was right. I did overthink things and I had lost fights because of it, but nowhere near as many as I'd won. "Got it. Stop thinking so much," I said, rubbing my hands together as I prepared myself for another round of face bashing.

 **4 painful hours later**

"Oh my God," I sighed, sinking into the soft sofas in the living room. Those four hours had been spent sparring with Natasha. 'Sparring' with Natasha was practically hell. Every part of my body felt bruised and beaten, like I had taken a hit by a train. I had been trained to kill and manipulate, but my skills were rusty. I had been training less since becoming a doctor and it had definitely taken a toll on my ability to fight. I needed to get back to the high standard I was at all those years ago.

"Tell me about it," Pietro said, rolling his shoulders until they clicked. I cringed at the noise, but let him sit down next to me regardless. He groaned and rubbed his back with his hand, obviously feeling pain there.

"Did Clint kick you in the back?" I asked, slightly concerned for his injury.

He winced and shook his head. "Got throw down on the ground and he dug his knee into my back in order to pin me."

"Want me to look at it for bruising?" I don't know why I offered. It wasn't like any bruising would come up yet anyway and his regenerative powers would soon be able to fix the problem anyway.

He glanced back at me briefly as he leaned back against the sofa. "I'm sure I'll be fine," he said, exhaling as he shut his eyes. "Genuinely tempted to take a nap right now."

"Well, if you do, don't forget that the party is in a few hours," I replied, pushing myself to a stand as I suddenly realised how hungry I had become from all the training.

I heard him groan loudly from behind me. "I forgot about that stupid party." I walked to the fridge and opened it, scanning to see what food we had in it. I smiled at the chopped tomatoes that were in there, thinking that they would undoubtedly go well with some rice.

"I'm sure it won't be stupid," I told him, reaching for the rice and shoving it in the microwave. I fiddled with the buttons and put it to the correct temperature and time. I went back to the fridge to get the chopped tomatoes. "It's a party being held by Tony Stark and I've heard he throws some pretty impressive parties."

"I hardly have any clothes to wear, let alone a posh suit," he complained, rubbing a hand over his face that seemed genuinely anxious. I saw him place his feet up on the living room table and cross his arms over his chest. My eyes flitted over to the bunk bed, looking down at the bags that were neatly placed by the end of beds.

"You could look in the bag that Pepper gave us. That might contain a suit." He looked over and quickly back to me, before nodding. The bags for us were pretty big, but I hadn't had the chance to see what was actually in them yet.

Find anything?" I asked, looking at the microwave as if it would cook my rice any quicker. I opened the tin of the chopped tomatoes and found a plate for me to have my meal on.

"Hang on," I heard him shout before hearing the sound of whooshing. I rolled my eyes and waited patiently for him to come and show me his outfit. Within the space of me blinking, he was suddenly stood in front of me. The suit was black with a white shirt and a black tie. The outfit was plain, but managed to make his face look incredible. Maybe it was because the outfit was so bland that his jawline and blue eyes stuck out so much.

"What do you think?" he asked, putting his arms out and slowly do a full circle. I smirked as I quickly checked out his butt, but forced myself to push my lips into a pleasant smile as he turned his front round to me.

"Very smooth." His lips twitched into a kind smile as he looked down at the suit and ran his hands over the jacket ends.

"Thanks," he replied, a faint blush on his cheeks as he looked back up at me. I pursed my lips as we locked eyes, neither of us seeming to want to break away. It reminded me of the first time this had happened, when he had first woken up after his death. He kept looking at me even when Wanda had called his name, like he had been waiting for me to smile and that would be the only way he could break away. I smiled, half of me hoping that the eye contact would end. But it didn't. He kept looking straight at me with a cute smile on his face that I couldn't quite decipher the meaning of. We were comfortably stuck.

*PING!* I gasped and nearly jumped out of my skin as the microwave dinged. "Holy crap," I muttered, opening the microwave and quickly getting my rice out. I winced as I realised I hadn't asked Pietro if he wanted any. "I forgot to ask. Did you want any?"

I looked over my shoulder as I asked the question to notice that he had already changed back into his normal clothes. Part of me felt disappointed. "I'll cook some myself once I've showered," he said, flashing a smile before he was already off again. I frowned at the bathroom door that was now shut, feeling like I hadn't fulfilled my job as a doctor by not checking up on him. I would have to check after his shower.

I poured half the chopped tomatoes can in with the quinoa and grabbed a fork to stir it together. I took a bite and sighed, content with the knowledge that I would be full in five minutes. Thinking of Pietro, I grabbed another quinoa bag from the cupboard and stuck it in the microwave, waiting to turn any knobs until the water had stopped running. Fortunately, by the time I had finished eating, the water had stopped running from the shower. I turned the dial and waited for it to ping, prepared this time for that to happen.

I noticed a rush of blue energy head to the bedroom and decided not to go and investigate, knowing that Pietro probably forgot to take his clothes into the bathroom with him. Soon enough, I heard the ping of the microwave and opened it, taking out the rice I had cooked for Pietro. "Riley..." I heard an annoyed Pietro say from across the room. I poured the rice onto the plate I had gotten for Pietro and mixed in the chopped tomatoes.

"It wasn't any trouble," I told him as I placed his plate on the table. He scowled at me and I raised my eyebrows. "You're annoyed at me for _making_ you food?" His scowl slowly lifted into a smirk of happiness.

"I guess you're gonna be a good roommate after all," he quipped, walking over to sit on one of the kitchen stools. I took my bowl to the washing up as I heard him tucking into the meal. "Thank you," he said from his seat, words muffled from the fact his mouth was full.

"That's okay, Piet," I replied, beginning to wash up the plate I had put my dinner on.

"No, no, no," I heard him say before wind blew past my face, the Sokovian ending up right next to me. He forced my hands out of the bowl and shook his head. "You did the cooking, I will do the washing. Understood?"

I smirked and looked down at my hands, covered in foam. My wrists were still incased by his fingers, but he slowly let go as I nodded my head in agreement to his proposal. "Good," he said, beginning to walk away, but I lifted up my foam covered hand and blew. The bubbles went all over his shirt as well as his face. I bit my lip in order to stop myself from laughing, but the look on his face was priceless. He looked angry, but I knew deep down he wasn't really mad. His lips were parted, slightly in shock, but he had to shut them as foams started to trail towards his mouth.

I noticed his eyes flicker towards the bowl and then back at me, smiling slightly. It was my turn. "No..." I warned him, holding up my finger as he inched closer towards the bowl. "No, no, no..." I said, watching as his hand hovered above the huge pile of bubbles I had created with the washing up liquid. I now regretted my decision to be a child and fill the bowl up with as much foam as it could handle.

He scraped up a huge amount of soap and chucked it at me, covering my hair and clothes. I growled and darted for the bowl, using the water this time to completely cover him to which he did the same. There we were, in the kitchen, chucking water at each other and probably ruining all the brand new furnishings...and it was only the first night. I laughed as I cupped water in my hands and threw it at him. He laughed too and went to grab the kitchen hose, which I only now realised could extend.

I only had a second to gasp before he turned on the taps and sprayed the water at me. I screamed, putting my hands out to try and stop him from spraying at me. I laughed as the water hit, finding our little fight exhilarating. The water was warm, but not too hot that it scolded me, which was the only reason why I wasn't annoyed with him spraying me. I ran forward and reached for the hose, jumping up to try and take it from his grasp, but he held it above his head so that I couldn't get to it.

He laughed at me, but I wasn't going to be defeated. I went to the bowl in the sink, checked that there wasn't any washing up in it and picked it up. Smiling, I turned the bowl and I invisible, watching as Pietro stared in concentration, trying to find anything to give my position away. "You can't hide forever..." he warned me, but I just smirked and tip toed behind him, making sure that my steps weren't heard. I nearly slipped at one point, but managed to position myself behind him. I tipped the bowl and watched with satisfaction as the water poured over his body.

"You little..." I heard him whisper before he turned around and grabbed my waist. I screamed as he slipped and we went straight for the floor. I turned my invisibility off as I landed on top of him, my legs on either side of his ribs. "Whoops," he said, looking at the mess that we had made in the kitchen. There was water all over the floor and bubbles all over the furniture. Thankfully all of it was wood and would clean up easily, but it did look pretty messy.

We both looked at each other and tried to stop ourselves from laughing, but couldn't help it. My hands were on either side of his head as I hung mine from laughing so hard. I felt his chest rise up and down as he laughed and I tried not to tighten my legs at the feeling of his tight muscles against me. My laugh turned into a cough as I tried to clear the thoughts from my head. I put my hand on his chest and quickly tried to stand to escape the situation, but slipped and immediately fell back down.

I probably would've hit my knee if Pietro's quick reflexes hadn't caught me. His hands immediately came out to grab my hips and stop me from falling. My hands were pressed on his chest again as I tried to stop my heart from beating so fast from the near-death experience. Well...near-death experience may have been an exaggeration. "Sorry," I whispered, laughing slightly at how silly the situation.

"It's fine," he said, awkwardly smiling as his eyes looked at anything but my face. I hadn't seen Pietro embarrassed as much as I had in the past few hours and realised that it was something that he didn't seem to like. Perhaps he didn't like the vulnerability feeling of it. I steadily pulled myself up using the side of the table to make myself not fall. I nearly felt my foot slip but managed to keep standing. Pietro positioned himself on his elbows as I pulled my foot from across his body next to mine

"Jeez, we have made quite a mess," I said, breaking the slightly tense silence that had formed between us. I looked round at the devastation we had caused. _This would take a while._

"JARVIS, is there a mop somewhere?" Pietro asked with a hopeful tone. He got to his feet and flicked his wrists, trying to get the water off his hands. It didn't really make any difference as he was still covered in water.

"I will turn on the drainers and the floor heaters, Mr Maximoff." Suddenly, one of the tiles near the sink area opened and began to drain the water out. The tiles started feeling warm underneath my feet and I could see the heat start to evaporate from the surfaces.

"Nice," I said, watching at the surfaces drained themselves. We would still need to wipe down the cupboards and the table, but it was far less water to clear up. I opened the cupboards until I found a cloth to clean everything up with. Pietro came up behind me, obviously trying to help, but I held up my hand. I pointed over to where his food was going cold. "Go eat," I ordered and then turned back to the cupboard, making it clear that I wasn't going to argue with him over the matter.

I heard him huff quietly and walk over to his seat. I managed to wipe down all of the surfaces without too much trouble. There were a few spots that were too high to reach and I couldn't be bothered to climb up to reach them as my body was still tired from the sparing sessions. "Thanks."

I turned round and saw him walk towards the sink with his plate, reaching for the washing up cloth. "What for?" I asked, hoisting myself up to sit on the now dry surface next to where Pietro was washing up. He stopped what he was doing and looked up at me with a small smile.

"You've been like a breath of fresh air to my life, you know..." I watched him as he stared at me, subconsciously biting my lip as I tried not to smile. It felt like it was a big deal for him, to have that new air in his life. "You've really been kind to me, much more than I deserve, so thank you."

I couldn't help but smile at his adorable revelation. He sheepishly looked back to the washing up and was about to start again, but I reached for his wrist. His eyes snapped up as I hopped off the counter and jumped up to wrap my arms around his neck. "You'll never be alone, Piet," I whispered, knowing it was what he wanted to hear. He had been looking after Wanda his whole life, had gotten used to cooking, cleaning and being a guardian to her, but it was his time to be looked after. They both deserved proper care.

"I'm getting you covered in water," he said, hesitant to wrap his arms around me as I clung to his neck.

"You already did that," I told him. He shrugged in response. He wrapped his arms around my waist and held me to him. We had been in close contact a lot in the past ten minutes. He squeezed me tightly and I giggled, feeling a little ticklish from it. I heard his sweet laugh next to my ear and couldn't stop the heat rising from my chest to tinge my cheeks. I slowly withdrew my arms, which he followed and stepped back from me, returning to his duty of washing up.

I sighed as I jumped back onto the counter, tapping my fingertips against the marble surface. "JARVIS, how long until the party starts?" I asked, grabbing the tea towel from next to me and moving to where Pietro had been placing the washing up.

"1 hour and 3 minutes," he replied. I smiled at the ceiling, thankful that one of Tony's creations was super helpful. I moved next to Pietro to do the drying up, but as soon as he noticed what I was doing, he used his powers to get it all done within a few seconds. I was suddenly moved five metres away as blue filled my vision. I heard a few clattering of plates as he quickly put the crockery away. He stopped by the sink and wiped his hands with the drying cloth before chucking it on the draining board. He turned to me. "You cooked, I clean," he reminded me and strolled past me, heading for the sofas.

"Wait," I called, walking up to him. "I want to check your wound to make sure that it has healed properly." He nodded, knowing there was no point in arguing with me, and lifted up the small portion of his shirt that he would let me see. He was sensitive about the scars that undoubtedly lied beneath his shirt and I wasn't the type of person to force someone into being comfortable.

I looked down to examine the wound that was left to find that it was practically healed, a scar being the only thing that remained. I ran my finger over it, watching to see whether his skin reacted. He seemed okay, even though I felt his muscles tighten underneath my fingertips and heard him take in a sharp breath. "Good," I said, coming to a stand as he let his shirt fall back into place.

He sat back down on the sofa and I stared at him curiously. "Are you not going to start getting ready?" I asked, looking down at his outfit that was still soaking wet.

He raised an eyebrow. "You're talking to the guy with super speed that can dress himself in under five seconds."

I rolled my eyes, taking myself towards the bathroom. I managed to peel off my clothes, the cold room air making me shiver slightly at my skin was exposed. I stripped down and turned the shower on, watching the water spray down from the ceiling. I checked the water was at the right temperature and stepped in, smiling at the feeling of the warm water on my skin. It felt so nice to relax after the trying day I had.

I squirted some shampoo onto my hand and slowly washed my hair, soothingly kneading my fingers into my scalp. I didn't usually like hanging around in showers, but the water felt so nice that I didn't want to leave. Once my hair was clean, I got some of the shower gel and started washing my armpits. It felt very luxurious as all the products were new. There were two large shelves, one for Pietro and one for me. I shaved my body with the new set of razors that I saw sitting on the shelf that was mine.

I finished rinsing myself off and looked at the electronic clock by the door, surprised that I had spent 15 minutes in the shower. I dried myself off and wrapped the towels around my body after putting on some deodorant. My wet hair was flopped on my shoulders, irritating my skin as well as making me cold. I picked up a hairbrush next to the sink, raked through the mess that I called my hair and grabbed another towel. I twisted it round into a turban and relished the free feeling my skin had around my shoulders and chest. Something about hair turbans and being in a towel made me feel elegant.

I poked my nose out of the door and noticed Pietro sitting on the couch watching something on the television. I left my invisibility cloud over and made my way across our shared apartment to see what was in the bag that Pepper had brought for me. As I walked over to the beds, I saw a blue energy whizz towards the kitchen out of the corner of my eye and the suddenly gush of wind made me shiver. What I didn't expect was for myself to walk into Pietro, still in my invisible form. His mouth was open as he frowned to himself. "Wanna move out the way?" I asked him, but he shook his head, obviously still unaware to my position as he was staring a few inches away from my eyes.

"Stay invisible and stay still..." he instructed and I nodded, not moving an inch. I suddenly felt very nervous in two white towels, the one around my body being very short, and nothing else. I gripped the towels tightly as I waited for him to do what he was going to do. His head became a blur, seemingly shaking from side to side incredibly fast. I stared at him in curiosity, wondering what an earth he was doing.

He stopped what he was doing and smiled, this time practically staring at me. "I can see you if I do that," he said, a small smile on his face.

"What?" I asked, a little shocked at his statement. Did that mean he could see me whenever he wanted when invisible? I clutched the towel even tighter.

"I can see you when I use my powers and move my head really fast. I don't know how, but that could be so important in the future." His eyes were lit up, like a child that had been given exactly what they wanted for Christmas. It was exciting, but what would happen if I wanted to get away from everything, to disappear for a while if things went bad - he would be able to find me. We stood in silence for a moment as I thought of a response.

"We can tell Steve later," I answered hesitantly, looking from the bed to him and hoping that he would get the hint that I didn't want to keep standing here. I felt like face planting when I realised that he couldn't see me as I was still invisible. He cleared his throat and looked over to the couch.

"Sorry, I'll leave you to change," he said and walked back over to the sofas. _Thank God._

I quickly walked over to the bag at the end of the bed. Attached to the bag handle was a note:

 _ **Hey Riley,**_

 _ **Hopefully you will like the things that I have picked out for you.**_

 _ **Much love,**_

 _ **Pepper**_

 _How sweet of her_. Tony's girlfriend seemed very nice, the complete opposite of Tony. The first and only time I had met her, I noticed immediately what Tony was attracted to. She seemed loveable and was extremely beautiful.

I looked around, checking to make sure Pietro's head wasn't in my direction before letting the towel loose. I opened the bag and found 3 pairs of underwear, 3 pairs of socks and 2 new bras, one of which was extremely thin and lacy. _When the fuck am I going to wear this?_ I thought as I dropped the item back into the bag. There were two tops, one black and one white, as well as a dark purple professional dress for work and a more...revealing dressed that was obviously for partying. Attached to the party dress was another note - _**Wear to tonight's party? P**_

I held the dress out and looked at it properly. I was slightly concerned about how she knew my measurements, but was glad she did as the dress was beautiful. I smiled wildly when I noticed two new pairs of tights in the bag, very thankful for that as I no longer had any pairs without holes in. I also noticed a few necklaces and earrings to wear as well as a shoe box that I was yet to dip into. I slipped on a new pair of the black lace pants and the bra that seemed to be more supportive.

I slipped the dress on and smiled when I realised it fit me. It was tight, very tight, and showed off everything. The straps were thin and crisscrossed at the back and I was very thankful that the bra I had put on had removable straps. The dress had a mesh strip across the middle that showed off the area between the bottom of my bra and the top of my belly button.

I let my hair out of the turban and ran to the bathroom to brush it through quickly. I gave it one more scrub before letting it dry naturally. I preferred letting my hair dry by itself for some reason. Hairdryers always tended to make me feel hot and bothered, like it was more of challenging than therapeutic. I went back over to the bag and decided to shed my invisibility as I was dressed. Even though I did, Pietro was too interested in watching...the football...I think? I couldn't quite see from where I was standing.

I opened the shoe box and saw a pair of small purple heels that matched the formal dress, but could easily go with the dress I was wearing. I slipped them on and reached for the jewellery box. I attached a small pair of studs to my ears and selected a really delicate necklace. It seemed expensive, real expensive. It was a simple gold chain with a small diamond encased in a gold circle.

"Allow me?" I nearly jumped out of my skin at Pietro's words. I turned round to face him and nodded, delicately giving him the necklace. Somehow he was already changed into his suit. I had no idea how that happened or when, but he was changed and looking just as attractive as before.

His gentle fingers unclasped the necklace and I turned around, using one of my hands to keep my hair out of the way. He slipped the necklace around my neck, his hands brushing my skin with the lightest touch, and clipped it. He placed his warm hands on my shoulders and gently guided me to face him. He looked at my face for a second before his eyes looked down at the outfit I was wearing, not leaving his eyes in one place for too long. We were only inches apart and it felt like I was trapped in his gaze, the air from my lungs freezing in a second. I looked at what he was wearing and how he suited it so well. _Screw the idea of a guy complimenting the girl first, I'm doing it._

"You look beautiful by the way. Suits suit you," I said with a smile and he chuckled to himself, shaking his head. I did a very good job at not letting a blush form on my face as he absorbed my words.

"First time I've worn one, so thank you," he replied, adjusting his tie slightly as he spoke. He looked over my outfit once more. "That dress looks gorgeous on you." The comment seemed somewhere between heartfelt and thrown away. Pietro was a smooth talker indeed.

"Thanks," I replied, fiddling with the charm on the end of my necklace as I admired it in the mirror. I looked up at him. "Are you ready to go?"

He nodded and held out his arm. "M'lady," he jested, tilting his head as he awaited my arm to wrap around his elbow.

"You're such an idiot," I replied, but put my arm in his nonetheless. We walked over to the door and I took my arm away from his to open the door. We didn't link arms again afterwards. Pietro shut the door and we made our way towards the living room. "Were we even given a plan of what is going to happen tonight?" I asked, pushing through a set of double doors.

"No idea, but if Stark is involved then it'll..." he trailed off as we entered the living room. There was no music playing. There were a few drinks at the corners of each room, untouched by the people convening in the middle who seemed to be having a very serious conversation. A very serious conversation until they heard us that is.

"What's going on?" I asked, but was only greeted by silence. Clint, Tony, James, Sam and Wanda were looking between each other as if wondering what to say. "What's happened?" I prompted, hoping that someone would tell me what the problem was and why everybody was so silent. Clint stepped forward, a concerned look on his face.

"It's Steve..."

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	13. The Truth About Steve

**Sorry I haven't posted in so long, I've been super busy! But over Christmas, you will be happy to know that I am going to be writing much more often. Thank you for putting up with me!**

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 **WARNING: This chapter contains mentions of suicide. Please do skip this chapter if this is a difficult topic for you as it is not an essential part of the plot.**

"Oh my God..." I muttered, slumping my body into the living room sofa. Steve had tried to kill himself. I hardly knew him, but I still felt bad for having no idea what was happening to him. I'd never personally known someone that had tried to commit suicide unless I counted myself.

Pietro gently placed his palm on my shoulder and rubbed affectionately at the exposed skin of my shoulder. I looked up at his concerned face, noticing the frown that rested on it. I wanted to reach out to smooth the lines between his eyebrows away from his face but resisted.

He obviously hadn't succeeded seeing as he said 'tried to kill himself' instead of saying that he was dead. I couldn't imagine our captain being dead. He hadn't even been a captain to me yet.

"Where is he now?" Pietro asked, his voice sounding deeply concerned for our teammate.

"He's currently recovering in his room," Clint replied, his face tense and nervous.

"Alone?" I asked, worried for his safety. I was going to Steve's room and demand to stay if nobody was going to help?

"No, Maria is with him making sure he is alright. We know that if anything is wrong, she'll get in touch," he explained, rubbing his hand over his face. He did the action as if it would rub away his tiredness, but it didn't help him to look any less exhausted. I could see the bags under his eyes getting darker by the second. "I'm going to bed. I'll see you guys tomorrow."

And with that, he was gone. I didn't blame him for not leaving. It must've been rough for him to see Steve that way. God knows what happened up on that rooftop. "Is there a plan now?" Pietro asked, looking around at the only ones left awake from tonight. Tony, Sam, Rhodey, Pietro and I.

"I think we are all going to bed, but I might get some food first," Rhodey said, beginning his way towards the kitchen.

"I'll join you for that," Tony said, following Rhodey. Sam did the same and I turned to Pietro. He wasn't tired at all, not experiencing the rooftop scare just like myself. Like him, I also wasn't tired. In fact, I was more awake than I was before I heard the news about Steve.

"What do you want to do?" I asked him quietly, the reveal of Steve's torment making me feel a little clueless. My mind felt so clouded. I was excited about having a party with everyone, getting a chance to mingle with the team. "I kind of want to stay with the team for a while." I felt like I had hardly spoken to anyone so far and I wanted to at least get some time with them.

Pietro was going to speak and by the small smile on his face I thought he would agree, but I saw Wanda walked over to us, looking quite flustered. "Do you mind if I talk to you?" she asked. I saw how concerned Pietro was for his sister and I knew immediately that it was something serious. He looked at me.

"I'll meet you at ours later?" he asked, the serious frown not leaving his face. I didn't like seeing him so worried.

"Alright," I replied, watching as he nodded and quickly led Wanda out of the room with him. Their relationship seemed very special indeed. I'd seen sibling bonds before, but none that I had seen had been quite as strong. It was obvious that they would do anything for each other, even if that meant sacrificing themselves for the other.

I felt a little sick at the idea of Wanda surviving without her brother and him not being here at all. I couldn't imagine how lonely she would feel if he had spent the rest of her life without him. I remember how heartbroken she was when we were standing on either side of his bed, looking at his bullet-ridden body. She was lost.

He was a wonderful person and I was lucky to have him as a partner, even though that partnership had little exploration so far. I was excited to see how we would work together. We'd spent so much time together over the past few days, apart from training, and I felt bad that I hadn't seen much of the team. With that thought, I made my way into the kitchen to eat dinner with the boys.

"Hey Randall," Tony greeted with a cheeky wink as I walked in. I frowned at him.

"Randall?" I questioned, taking a seat besides Sam. He stared at me with furrowed eyebrows and widenned eyes.

"Randall Boggs..." he said as if it explained the situation any further to me. I had no clue as to what he was referencing. I also didn't appreciate the patronising tone of his voice. Sam shook his head at Stark's antics and chuckled slightly.

"Invisible villain from Monsters Inc," he answered for me. I rolled my eyes as the billionaire smirked at me. I didn't appreciate Tony Stark like the rest of the world did. He made bombs and weapons, some of which I had used to kill my targets with. Obviously, I was very glad that he moved on from that profession, but he still did it. Just because he was a changed man, it doesn't change the things he did.

"Is pasta okay with everyone?" Rhodey asked, getting out a pan from the cupboard.

James Rhodes. Slightly less well known as Tony Stark to the public, but he was well known to me. Colonel James Rupert Rhodes was a U.S. military officer and jet pilot in the U.S Air Force. He's the best friend of Tony Stark and the liaison between Stark Industries and the military in the Department of Acquisitions. I also remember reading that when Stark was kidnapped by the Ten Rings, Rhodes led the mission to rescue his friend. They really were best friends. I felt bad that I had information on all of them, but I was trained to know about influential people in the world. Rhodey was one of those people.

"Did anyone know about Steve?" I asked, trying to take my mind off the way I had intruded each Avenger's life without their permission.

"No clue," Sam sighed, rubbing his hand over his face. I felt bad for Sam, not realizing what was going on with Steve. I mentally went over the information that I had on Sam in my head.

Samuel Thomas Wilson, better known as Falcon, joined the United States Air Force, serving two tours and eventually becoming a pararescueman, assigned to the 58th Rescue Squadron. He was a test pilot for the EX0-7 Falcon along with his wingman, Riley. One of his missions involved in successfully capturing Khalid Khandil in Bakhmala, Afghanistan.

During another mission, Riley was killed after being hit with an RPG and Wilson could do nothing to save him. It was one of the things that motivated him to help others. He retired from active duty and began helping fellow veterans who were suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder at the VA (Veterans Affairs). During this time, Wilson became an ally of Captain America during the HYDRA Uprising and assisted him in his search for Bucky Barnes, one that they have no finished to this day.

Thinking about it, that must've been one of the things that made Steve feel so down. He had lost his friend, someone who had been with him since childhood. He must've felt so helpless without him. Not only did Steve watch Bucky 'die', but he had to fight him when he was fighting in the Battle of DC. The turmoil that put him through must've driven him mad.

"Has he been like this for a while?" I asked Sam, wondering if there had been any hints about what was going to happen.

"I didn't realise the signs of depression until now."

"Depression?" Tony asked, a confused look on his face. "You think he has depression?" I had never seen Tony look as worried as he had now. Even though he had made jokes throughout the time we had been here, I had only now noticed the sincere look on his face. He was deeply concerned for Steve's well-being, whether he would admit it or not.

"That would be my diagnosis," Sam sighed, taking a long sip of his drink.

"What signs?" Rhodey asked, overlooking the pan that was just starting to boil

"There's a list of factors that can lead to depression. Obviously, people can have these without being depressed, but with what I've seen today, I wouldn't be surprised that these all contributed to it," he said, sounding like he had rehearsed the same phrases over and over again. I had no doubt that he had to explain these things multiple times anyway, given his position at the VA.

"Lack of sleeping is one, something that most of us struggle with. Inappropriate and excessive guilty, something that most likely would've come with Bucky's death and the fact that he was taken in by HYDRA. He completely blames himself for that. He doesn't want to do anything anymore and I remember Hill saying to me that he doesn't want to contribute to society anymore."

"I said to him that we weren't all going to make it out of the battle with Ultron alive," Tony said, clearing his throat as he frowned. "and that there was going to be blood on the floor and he said 'I don't have any plans tomorrow night.'" Tony sighed and leant back in his chair. I could see the regret on his face.

"It's not your fault Tony. From what I gathered on the rooftop, he feels hopeless and worthless, having no sense of his future and feeling like he doesn't fit in in this time zone. He's obviously been having flashbacks. I remember when he slept in the compound during the HYDRA takeover. I also remember how I walked into his room after hearing screaming and watching him stir in his bed as he lived through his dreams. I nearly got decapitated by his shield."

"Jeez," Rhodey whispered, ignoring the pasta pot that he was stirring as he stared at Sam as he spoke.

"He never told me what was in the dream, but I had a feeling it was to do with his past. He doesn't care if he goes into battle and gets killed, that's for sure. I remember a conversation we had on a rooftop. He said to me that nothing made him happy and I'm starting to believe that's true. He said that he wouldn't know what to do with himself if he didn't have the job of being Captain," he explained, shaking his head at the situation. "Wanda's powers must've exaggerated the feelings he already had, the self-destructiveness, the mourning he's still experiencing, the adjustment to foreign life and the trauma from Bucky."

It took me a minute to process everything that he was just saying. It sounded like everything had just built up to this moment, the feelings piling up until the exploded and he couldn't take it. "What did he...say on the roof?" I asked tentatively, not wanting to be too forward, but I was interested. It worried me, how serious the situation was, and I felt a need to know how he felt, coming directly from his mouth rather than from the other teammates.

Sam nodded and tilted his head to the ceiling. "JARVIS play the clip from the roof please," he ordered and a video showed up on the table in front of each of us, a small screen where a placement would be on a table.

 _"Steve."_ It was Maria. She was by the door with Clint and Natasha, Steve on the other side of the rooftop...on the edge.

 _"Steve, what the hell are you doing?"_ Clint asked, stepping forward slightly. Maria was in front of Clint and Nat, but Natasha was completely frozen. I couldn't see her face from the direction of the camera, but she was obviously deeply shocked by what was going on.

 _"I can't do this. I can't..."_ His poor voice sounded so weak and hopeless. I completely understood what Sam meant now by that.

 _"Yes, you can, Steve."_ Maria again. Listen to me, everything is going to be fi-"

 _"No, it's not!"_ I blinked at the harsh tone of his voice as I watched him spin round on the edge of the roof. I sucked in a breathe quickly, worried that he might fall. Then I remembered that it wasn't live and exhaled, telling myself that Steve was okay. He wasn't dead.

 _"Steve…"_ Maria whispered softly, taking a hesitant step forward to not scare him or make him do anything irrational. _"Look at me."_ I only just managed to hear the whisper of her voice. _"What's making you upset? What are you feeling like this?"_

That was when Tony, Rhodey and Sam entered the scene, watching the scene that was playing out before them. Steve didn't seem to notice that they had even walked onto the roof. _"They forget I'm human. Nothing...there's nothing here to make me happy."_ He sounded so fed up with the world, his tone sounding defeated and tired, as he stared at Maria. I could see the intensity of his gaze like he was gripping at straws to find some kind of will to live. How did Hill cope with all of it?

 _"I just want to go back...to when things were normal,_ " he explained further. _"And there's all this pressure because everyone is hovering around me, waiting for me to do something, or say something, or flip out, or mess up, or yell, or cry some more about how upset I am for living in this time."_ I was surprised he was even talking at all, but he seemed so fed up like he needed to get it off his chest. It could've helped him so he decided to step away from the ledge or something else happened and he was forced to not commit suicide.

 _"And I want to say that I'm happy to play my part, I'm happy to say the lines and do whatever it is that I'm supposed to be doing if it will make everyone feel more comfortable. But I don't...I don't know how to do it anymore. I don't know how to be that person...I don't know who this person is. I'm meant to be Steve Rogers, but he's Captain America. It doesn't...I...How did this happen? How did I end up here?"_ He was becoming confused with himself now, almost angry with what he was talking about.

 _"Why am I alone?"_ he sounded aggravated rather than upset about the fact he was alone. He wasn't though. He was meant to have the Avengers with him, his friends. I couldn't imagine how everyone was feeling, people who knew him much better than I did. _"Everything I've ever cared about is gone. Ruined, dead!"_

He was practically screaming now, his hands in tight fists and his chest moving up and down at the speed of his quick breaths. _"The commandos, Peggy, Bucky. Dead! They're all dead! I have never been more alone. I have nothing. No one! It's all gone!"_

 _"You're scared,"_ Maria said, stepping forward again and I could see how he glared at her. Wanda and Vision entered the scene, but he didn't seem to notice them either.

 _"I'm not,"_ he answered in a deep, gruff voice that scared me a little. The time that I had been with Steve hadn't made me ever feel scared of him. Until now.

 _"Yes, you are. I know what you're going through,_ " Hill told him, trying to reassure him, but that only seemed to irritate him.

 _"N-no, you don't. No one...no one gets it,"_ he groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. I noticed the tight grip he held on the strands and winced at how painful he must've been pulling them.

 _"I do._ You have _a fear...that you're going to be alone? That you're not good enough and that you have to change yourself, but you don't want to change? I know how it goes...you start believing you are a failure and that no one will accept you. You are not alone."_ He shook his head as she spoke. Even though she could've been lying to him, she sounded like she was telling the truth. It made me wonder about what had happened to Maria. She was a dark horse and the person that nobody in the media ever spoke about. She was the secret of S.H.I.E.L.D and the Avengers.

It made me remember. Maria Hill. Born on April 4th, 1982. Upon reaching to her adulthood, Hill first joined to the United States Armed Forces and later joined S.H.I.E.L.D. and rose through its ranks, at one point working in Madripoor and becoming one of the organization's best agents. By 2012, Hill had already caught the eye of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s director Nick Fury and had been appointed Deputy Director, working closely with Fury.

Hill monitored the Battle of New York as the Avengers fought against Loki's army of the Chitauri, who had successfully invaded Earth through a portal created by the Tesseract which was being powered by Stark Tower. During the Battle of New York, Hill was aware that Nick Fury used Project T.A.H.I.T.I. to bring Phil Coulson back to life. She aided Fury in keeping the truth hidden from Coulson. She also aided Steve, Natasha and Sam during the DC battle where she helped disable the Project Insight Hellicarriers. After that, she worked for Stark Industries, most likely as a mole for Nick Fury, as well as go on to join the Avengers.

 _"You're not alone. And we...we accept you. You think you're a failure, don't you?"_ she questioned, turning her head to the side as she did. She was such a mystery. I shook my head, not thinking that was the relevant thing to be thinking about.

 _"The serum worked,"_ he replied, answering with gritted teeth.

 _"I'm not talking about the serum, I'm talking about you,"_ she replied, her voice a little harsher than before. _"I'm talking about the fact that you wake up every morning and you do good, you don't sit around wasting your life away, you help us. We'd be nothing without you."_

 _"The Avengers can get a new leader,"_ he argued. He wouldn't stop making excuses not to be around and it worried me. How long did he feel like he didn't need to be here?

 _"It's not about the Avengers, it's about you. And even if it was about them, do you ever think we'd have a better leader than you? And don't you dare nod_ Rogers _. Don't you dare."_ She walked a little closer and I noticed him shuffle slightly. I could see the urge to jump as his hands twitched. _"There are some things in your life that are out of your control that you can't change and you've gotta live with that. The choice that we have though is to give up or keep going. Are you gonna believe in yourself or in people's judgement of you?"_

 _"Even when I'm off duty, I feel like they're all staring at me, waiting for me to...I don't know, I...I feel like I always need to impress people,"_ he admitted. I could see the tears that were streaming down his face and my heart clenched at the sight of him looking so vulnerable.

 _"But you don't...you don't okay?"_ she said. He shut his eyes and clenched them and she took another step forward. They were only about two metres away from each other now. _"I really need you to step away from the edge for me Steve..."_

I saw his hands begin to shake on either side of his body, his jaw shaking. I couldn't figure out the reason why. Perhaps he was scared? Angry? Sad? All three most likely. _"Are you going to finish your life, here, falling off the edge of a building...or are you going to step off the ledge and finish it in battle, being strong and fighting for others, because that's what Steve Rogers would do."_

He sniffled, looking at her again, not noticing that Tony was typing something on his phone. He didn't even notice the others that had joined, only choosing to focus on Hill. I wondered what relationship they had for him to trust her as much as she did. She didn't seem like the most trustworthy person, however. I saw his body shake with sobs as she spoke again. _"Even though you feel like this is the end, are you not still here? You are still here. With us. With me. You don't have to do this alone."_

The entire rooftop was filled with silence, a silence that felt like it was stretching on forever. I thought it was the end of the tape, that nothing else was going to happen, and I felt confused. But then I heard Pepper scream.

 _"No, no, no, NO!_ " Pepper shouted as I watched his body fall backwards. I stared intently, watching as his body fell. It was like the situation was in slow motion. Maria charged forward into a sprint to try and get him, but it was too late.

A second later, he reappeared, being pulled over the balcony by one of Tony's machines. I looked at the billionaire on the footage, using his phone to communicate with the machine. He began to sob and Tony told JARVIS to end the video. It disappeared from the screen and I looked up at him.

"Thank God you saved him," I thanked him, but he just shrugged and shook his head as a way of telling me not to worry about it. I again processed the information I'd just seen. That's what I did when I had to deal with difficult things - I processed. Steve obviously didn't have a sense of home, especially with Peggy and Bucky away from him.

"What do we do about him then?" I asked, looking at Sam for some kind of guidance. If anyone knew what to do, it would be him.

"He wouldn't want a counsellor. I mean, I'll suggest it to him, but he doesn't seem like the type," he sighed, drumming his fingers against the table in thought. "I guess we will need to support him, one of us if not all of us."

"Hill is in there with him now. If he trusts her that much, hopefully, she will help with a lot of his recovery," I added. I wouldn't put my trust in Hill, but if it worked for him then I was happy.`

"Yeah, hopefully," he said, staring at a spot on the table. Sam was a little like Steve in that he put too much pressure on himself. I hoped that he wouldn't go overboard with helping Steve. I was confident that he wouldn't though as he seemed to know the limits of people.

"Tony, get off your lazy ass and grate some cheese will you?" Rhodey asked, breaking the silence that was building between us. Tony looked at James with a deadpan expression.

"So rude," he huffed, but got up and went to the fridge. James smirked at his friend and I couldn't help but crack a smile as well.

We didn't talk about Steve after that. It had felt odd to talk about him when he wasn't with us all. I didn't like talking about someone behind their back. We bantered for a while and ate some cheesy pasta which was heavenly. Cheesy pasta was definitely a weakness of mine. That and gingerbread. Damn, gingerbread was good.

We must've stayed in the kitchen for half an hour, but I felt myself getting tired after a while and decided to head back to my room.

"I'm going to head to bed," I said, putting my newly dried plate in the cupboard after washing it. "I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"We should be training, as usual, but it might be with me or someone else," Sam noted to me as I left. I nodded and smiled as I left, feeling slightly more content that I'd spent some more time with the group.

 **So, much less Pietro in this chapter, but I felt like she should have more interaction with the rest of the Avengers. He will be back in the next chapter though ;) You can read through the full rooftop scene on my Steve Rogers story.**

 **Please feed me with reviews, I will honestly take a food baby full! :P**


	14. Nightmare

**I understand that Steve's storyline with the suicide is a little much, but if you go and read the story on my page, you might understand a little more. He's dealing with the stress of being Captain America and you'll find out in this chapter why he went to such extreme lengths.**

 **Response to reviews:**

 **Guest - I'll try and update as much as I can. I'm sorry, I have been awfully busy recently as my mum is suffering from cancer.**

 **Princess2017 - Wow in a good way? Bad? Probably bad from the whole Steve thing, but it gets better, I assure you.**

 **Bunniesrcute - Yeah, it is a little overwhelming, but it's just how I'm viewing Steve in my other chapter.**

 **Howling2themoon - Steve's just going through a lot. It's better explained in my other story, but they all link together so I couldn't leave it out.**

"What did you and Wanda talk about?"

He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. "She was blaming herself for his attempt, talking about how he never would've felt that way unless she warped his mind."

Even though she may have had a part to play, I got the feeling that Steve already had those emotions and feelings about himself before Wanda used her powers. "I doubt it made much difference. It may have triggered him to do it, but it likely would've happened anyway."

He nodded, agreeing with me, as he slumped himself into the chair next to me. He didn't look tired before, but he certainly looked tired now. "Do you want to go to bed?"

He groaned and let his head fall back, resting it against the soft cushion of the sofa. "So faaaarrrr," he complained, whining like a child. I rolled my eyes and stood up, holding my hand out for him to take.

"You need some sleep, especially after training and everything that's happened with Steve tonight." He was still looking up at me with puppy dog eyes, begging for me to leave him to sleep on the sofa. Too bad, I didn't feel sympathetic.

I grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet, almost a bit too hard as he stumbled forward a little. The sudden movement of him getting up caused him to tower over me. I felt fear flicker through me and just for a millisecond, I turned invisible. I hoped that he hadn't noticed, but I knew I my head that he would have.

"What was that?" he asked, stepping a little away from me as his warm hands rested on my forearms.

I shook my head. "It was nothing," I told him, but I could hear the overly defensive tone of my voice. I moved to get away, but he pulled me back. I felt my heart jump in my chest at the rough tug and he quickly noticed that I wasn't fond of him doing that. He loosened his grip, almost so that he wasn't touching me at all, but not completely letting go. We both knew that if he did that I wasn't going to explain why I reacted the way I did. His eyes softened like he was terrified of thinking he hurt me.

"I'll never hurt you," he whispered, just loud enough for me to hear. He soothingly stroked his fingers up and down my hand to calm me. I felt my breathing become more even and I shut my eyes, knowing that what he said was true. "You can trust me not to manipulate you in the way they did."

My eyes snapped open at the statement. He knew. I almost felt myself laugh in my head at the thoughts I had saying that he couldn't have known. He had worked with HYDRA and been part of their operation, meaning that he knew what they were like.

"Thank you," was the only thing I found myself able to say. There was no point bombarding him with questions about how much he knew about HYDRA because it probably hurt him just as much as it hurt me.

"Bed?" he suggested and I quietly groaned, letting my head fall against his rather firm chest.

"I. Need. Sleep." I complained, feeling my energy draining to the floor each second I stayed standing. I felt his arm slither around my back to pull me close to him and I let him.

I turned my head and let my cheek squish into his chest, sighing as he held me. "I'm happy you're my partner," I said, the last part of my sentence turning into a yawn. He chuckled quietly and I could feel the vibrations from his chest against my head and in my ear.

"You must be really tired to say that," he replied, still laughing as we headed for the beds.

"It's a thing. When I'm tired or drunk, I don't really have a filter for my brain," I admitted. I thought afterwards that it might not have been the best secret to tell him. He would definitely use that against me in the future.

"I need to get you tired and drunk more often. Come on," he said, pulling me up a little straighter and ushering me towards the bunk beds.

I groaned as we got to the beds and let me slip away from Pietro. "Why did I choose the top bunk again?" I groaned, looking at Pietro who was smirking at me.

"It's going to be such a pain when you're drunk," he chuckled as he sat down on his bunk. I wasn't really sure what to do, standing there as he lay down. I just decided to get changed.

Turning invisible, I walked over to my wardrobe and started to strip my clothes. It was slightly difficult to get the skin tight purple dress off, but it took a while to peel it off.

"Do you think Steve's going to be okay?" I asked, finding an oversized shirt to sleep in. I lazily pulled it over my head and pushed my arms through.

"He'll be fine," he replied with an eased tone as I unhooked the back of my bra. One thing I found about Pietro's voice is that you could tell when he was being honest. That or he was a very good actor.

I went in the search for some pyjama shorts and found blue and white stripey pair that didn't ride up too high, but weren't too loose so that I would be uncomfortable.

I slipped them on and turned my invisibility off, making my way to climb up the bunk bed steps. I didn't have the energy to run up the wall and push myself onto it. "JARVIS?" I asked, wincing slightly at the cold temperature of the steps.

"What can I do for you, Miss Moore?" the AI replied. It was such an interesting feature of the building. Stark really was a genius, even if he was extremely accurate. I remembered reading that it was based on Tony's childhood butler called Edwin Jarvis.

The system was tasked with running the business for Stark Industries as well as security for Tony's mansion and Stark Tower. After creating his Iron Man suits, he uploaded JARVIS into them as well as allowing him to interact with the other Avengers, giving them valuable information during combat.

"Would you be able to set an alarm for tomorrow morning at 7 am?" I asked, flopping back on the bed.

"Of course, Miss," he replied. It was fascinating how real he sounded and how quick his responses were.

"Seven?!" I heard Pietro exclaim from the bed below me. I rolled my eyes and looked over the edge of my bed to stare at him. My hair hung down from gravity and I thought the view he had of me would be quite strange.

From the upside down position I was in, I could see he was shirtless with the duvet pulled up to just under his armpits with his arms over the duvet. His eyebrows were raised, staring at me like a crazy woman for trying to set an alarm at that time. "Yeah, it's not that early," I said with a grin.

Pietro was definitely the type to sleep in. "JARVIS, change to seven thirty," he called and cheekily stuck his tongue out at me.

"Change to seven fifteen," I argued, pushing myself back to lie down on the bed.

"JARV-"

"Seven fifteen!" I shouted as a final word. I heard Pietro chuckle at our playful banter and I let a soft laugh escape my lips as well. "Goodnight Pietro," I said just loud enough for him to hear. It was odd to say goodnight to somewhere. There were only a few occasions where I had shared a room with someone else, usually for a mission.

"Night Riley."

 **Several hours later**

I was a soft sleeper, always had been. It was probably because I was an agent and had gotten used to listening out for movement while I sleep. That training was what woke me early the next morning.

He was breathing, quickly, and groaning. It definitely wasn't a pleasurable groan either. It almost sounded like a whimper. "Pietro?" I called, sitting up in my bed and shuffling over to the stairs. I decided to use the stairs instead of jump to the floor in case it scared him.

The duvet was now down to the bottom of his stomach, his legs almost tangled up in it. His head was flicking from side to side, his face and chest sprinkled with sweat. "Aw, Sweetie," I whispered, looking at the way he writhed on the bed.

"Pietro," I called a little louder, hoping to wake him up. I didn't want him to stay in his nightmares, but I also didn't want him to touch him. I remembered how Bucky would sometimes be startled if I touched him to wake him up from a nightmare, sometimes acting out violently. It was never his fault even though he would always blame himself. I cringed as I remembered the feeling of his cold, metal fingers clasped around my neck from one of the nights I woke him. I had to physically shake my head to push the memory away.

"Pietro," I near-shouted, taking a step closer, but not too close to seem overbearing. The pace of his breathing increased and he was gasping now. "Wake up!" I shouted a little louder and suddenly his eyes snapped awake, taking a deep breath as his pushed his chest up.

He immediately sat up, narrowly missing my bed above his head. "It's okay, you're okay," I reassured him quickly as he looked around with panic. My heart clenched as he shuffled away from me a little, a confused look in his eyes. "It's fine." He stared at me, eyes wide and scared. I had the feeling that it was rare to see him scared.

"Riley," he whispered, his voice tight and I barely heard him. I slowly sat down and gave a small smile to try and show calm him. The crease in his eyebrows relaxed when he began to realise that his nightmare wasn't real.

"Yeah, it's me," I whispered back, placing my hand on the sheets next to him. The bunk bed was thankfully big enough for me to sit on his bed and not hit my head. He hung his head as he tried to concentrate on his breathing. It was heavy and quick, but slowly he began breathing normally again. He was in a loose tucked position on the bed, his hands on his knees.

He groaned and glanced his head up to the side, a look on his face that I could only describe as guilt. "I'm sorry for this."

"Don't you dare," I replied immediately. "Nightmares can't be helped with people like us," I told him, reaching out a hand to place on his thigh. I didn't like how he blamed himself for something like that. He must've felt bad for waking me up, but I didn't mind.

"It was Sokovia," he said, pushing himself back against the wall. He dragged a hand through his hair as I moved to sit next to him, mimicking his tucked position as I rested my arms on my knees.

"I felt the bullets entering my body like a knife cutting butter," he began, an emptiness to his voice. "I remember how it burnt as the bullets ripped through my skin and muscle and bone and through the other side like I was paper." He leant his head back to hit the wall and I winced at the quiet thud the contact made. "As I fell, I heard her scream."

He took a breath and loudly exhaled as he shook his head. "No matter how much the bullet hurt me, hearing her scream was the most agonising thing of all. I felt like losing her was worse than losing myself." I tilted my head to look at his face and watched as his eyes shut. I looked at the way his face frowned as if he were still fighting that nightmare.

I reached out and gently made my way up his forearm and slid my fingers through his. I had known him for nearly four days, but I still felt like I knew so much about him, his family, his life, his suffering, but there was still so much more to learn. He intrigued me. "Neither of you is lost," I said, squeezing his hand gently as I stared at him. His eyes had opened as soon as I made the contact and I almost felt them on me before I saw them.

"I can protect her now," he replied as if he were to throw himself in front of every obstacle she ever faced. In my head, I imagined that a big brother was supposed to look after their younger sibling, but not put their life on the line at every obstacle.

"She can protect herself," I said, adding a little firmness to my voice to make him understand where I was coming from. This time he didn't pout or get a little annoyed like I expected him to, but simply nodded. I felt myself gain some respect from him then, not that I didn't feel respect from him already.

"I know," he whispered. Before I realised what he was doing, his head was resting on my shoulder as we both looked forward at the empty space that led to the far wall. It was so silent, our breathing the only thing to be heard in the large room. It was almost too large.

My mind wandered off to how protective Pietro was of his twin. During practice, I remember him joking that he was the older one, but only by twelve minutes. That thought pulled my lips into a small smile. It lessened slightly when I remembered all the pain that the twins had been through even though they were so young.

All of the Avengers had their problems, but Pietro's and Wanda's childhoods must've been particularly painful. They lost their parents, they powers they gained and the treatment they received from HYDRA. I squeezed his hand tightly again. "You've been through so much pain with your parents and HYDRA," I whispered, a tear coming to my eye as I thought about the torture he must've endured since the age of ten. So young. Too young.

I released a shaky breath. "Nobody deserves to go through that kind of torture, especially you." I felt his head lift from my shoulder and I turned to look at him. There was a tear in his eye as well. I sniffled as I felt the tears drop from my eyes. "I promise, as your partner, I'll try and protect you as much as I can."

He smiled a little and lifted his hands up. I was scared of what he was going to do for a second, but I let him. He wiped away the tears on my cheek's with his thumbs. He was gentle and soft. It was odd to feel that affection when I had hardly experienced it through my life. It wasn't even like I loved or even like Pietro as more than a friend, but it was nice to feel close to someone. Perhaps Stockholm Syndrome was in effect like it was with Bucky.

"Ditto," he replied simply, showing me a small smile as he took his hands away from my face. I felt stupid for crying for him, but his story was so sad to me. It wasn't his fault all these things had happened to him. It was only because of the location and circumstance that he ended up how he was. Without him and Wanda, Sokovia could've fallen. He saved so many people and I, along with many others no doubt, was very grateful for his services.

His hands were in his lap now, cradled together, and I felt awkward just sitting there not doing anything. "Are-" _Stupid question._ "Do you feel better?" I asked, not wanting to ask if he was okay. Of course he wasn't okay. I almost felt my heart contract with the idea that he may never be okay again from all the suffering he had endured.

He nodded. "I feel much better," he replied. I felt a little happier knowing that I helped him somehow, even if it were only a small gesture. I was about to make my move to go back to bed, but he reached for my hand. I tensed at the contact but tried to not make it noticeable to him. At least this time I didn't turn invisible at him scaring me. I wasn't used to contact yet. Pietro could help with that. Hopefully. "Thank you," he whispered, his eyes staring at me with such intensity that the best actor wouldn't be able to pull off. I smiled as I realised how he was genuinely grateful for my help.

"That's alright," I replied and squeezed his hand. He kept the eye contact, but I decided to break it, not wanting to push my luck with my boundaries that morning. I slipped away from his hold and shuffled to the side of the bed, trying my best to not scrumple his bedsheets anymore than he already had. I stood on briefly looked at him throwing a 'goodnight Pietro' before I made my way up the steps.

"Goodnight," he replied as I reached the top, practically throwing myself back onto the bed. I wasn't tired anymore and the fact that he was still awake beneath me made my skin itch. I felt paranoid that someone else was in my room, which was strange because I hadn't felt that when we initially went to sleep. In my mind, I knew it was because he panicked me when he grabbed my hand. It wasn't even rough, just a light touch of his fingers, but a light touch was all it took to keep me on edge the rest of the morning until the alarm went off.

I didn't know how but I kept my mind in a limbo state, not really thinking about anything as I lay there staring at the ceiling. It only felt like half an hour to me, but it must've been hours. When the alarm went off, I sat up in shock and was surprised to see it was getting light. I felt like I had almost been in a vegetative state. It was mindblowing to think that a few hours had only felt like half an hour. It was unlikely that I would feel tired later tonight however as I had learnt from my time at HYDRA that sleep was for the weak and a privilege I had no place in using. S.H.I.E.L.D taught me differently and that sleep was vital to mission success, but part of HYDRA would always remain in me, no matter how much I tried to get rid of it.

"Fucking hell..." I heard my partner grumble from the bed below.

"It's not that early," I mumbled and pushed myself out of the bed, climbing down the steps. I felt that at some point I was going to regret wanting the top bunk. Hopefully, it wouldn't be for too long. "I'll cook you some eggs," I told him, hearing a satisfied noise come from his as I walked into the kitchen.

I found a pan and squirted it with some Frylight olive oil spray before putting it on the stove to heat it up. The fridge was huge and well stocked, the eggs being on the interior door shelves. "JARVIS, play the playlist 'Morning Acoustic' from Spotify," I said out loud and soon a sweet melody of 'Like Real People Do' by Hozier started playing.

I started humming the guitar melody as I got the eggs and nabbed some bacon as well. It placed four pieces of bacon in the pan and squeeze two of the eggs in the middle, a somewhat satisfying sizzling noise sounding from the pan as I did.

 _"Honey, just put your sweet lips on my lips..."_ I sang quietly, getting out two plates to use. I grabbed some cutlery too and neatly placed it on the table. I got two glasses and poured some orange juice for me and started brewing some coffee for Pietro. Something told me he was a coffee guy.

 _"I knew that look dear, eyes always seeking. Was there_ in _someone that dug long ago?"_ Hozier was a brilliant artist, such a soft tone and beautiful lyrics to match. It made me feel so relaxed that I began swaying to the music as I turned over the bacon.

 _"So I will not ask you why you were creeping in some sad way I already know."_ I flipped the egg in the pan and suddenly realised I'd forgotten the bread. "Shit," I whispered, rushing to the cupboard to pick out some brown bread and a tub of butter from the fridge. I quickly buttered the bread and placed the bacon on top, letting the eggs cook for a little longer.

" _I will not ask you where you came from, I will not ask you and neither would you."_ Once the eggs were done, I placed them on top of the bread and turned off the hob. I picked up the plates and went to the table. " _Honey just put your sweet lips on my lips, we should just kiss like real people do."_

I grabbed Pietro's now-brewed coffee and placed it on the table. I was about to go and get him when I realised he was partially in the room already, leaning against the door as he watched me. "How long have you been there?" I asked with a frown as a small blush tainted my cheeks. I listened as the room was silent for a second, nothing between us until 'Heartbeats' by Jose Gonzalez began.

He smiled at me as I sat down in my seat. He walked around the table as I picked up my knife and fork. I cut up a piece of bacon and soon realised after the first bite that it was missing a vital ingredient. I pushed my chair away to stand, but Pietro was coming back from the cupboards with a bottle of ketchup in his hand. He handed it to me and I took it, sitting back in my seat again.

He sat down in his chair and stared at the food, almost in a loving way. I had never seen a man so excited by food. I had to stop myself from chuckling. "You have a lovely singing voice," he complimented as I put some ketchup on my plate.

His reply didn't answer the question of how long he was there, but it answered the real question I wanted to know. "Thank you," I said, forcing myself to take the compliment. I had been trying to do that more often recently, finding that arguing with people was frustrating. I knew that when I paid people compliments I didn't like them arguing with me. I was quite a stubborn person though.

I saw as he took the first bit of fried egg, bacon and bread. He groaned and shut his eggs as he did. "Oh my goodness," he said, the last bit muffled by the food he was eating at the same time. I rolled my eyes at his manners, but he didn't notice. He opened his eyes and nodded. "This is amazing, thank you."

I smiled at him and continued eating breakfast. It was just eggs and bacon, nothing special. Nothing like pancakes. My stomach grumbled at how good Pietro's pancakes had tasted yesterday. _Dammit, now I wanted pancakes._ That had set me up well for yesterday, even though it didn't stop training being painful. I frowned at the bruise that I noticed on my arm. Nat had a solid punch.

"JARVIS? How's Steve doing?" I asked, now thinking about the day we had ahead of us. Would he even still be Captain America after last night? Hopefully, he would be. He seemed so lovely, even if he was struggling that much. He didn't seem to show it.

"Mr Rogers is currently asleep," JARVIS began. That raised an eyebrow. Was he sleeping in? I definitely didn't imagine Steve being that kind of man. I guessed that after the stressful day he had yesterday, he needed the time to relax. "Miss Romanoff is taking over training today while Miss Hill remains with Mr Rogers."

I nodded, almost like JARVIS could see me, but stopped after I realised that he most likely couldn't. "Is he feeling better?" Pietro asked, taking a sip of coffee. It was funny how Pietro's accent was so strong when surrounded by so many Americans. He wouldn't change for anyone, his personality as well as his accent. He was stubborn like me too.

"Miss Maximoff's energy was stuck inside Mr Rogers' head, forcing him into an uncomfortable environment that led to the events of yesterday evening," JARVIS explained. Even though it was Wanda's fault, we all knew it would've been unintentional. Now it made sense when Pietro came back last night that he said Wanda blamed herself. "He has been feeling more like himself now the energy has been removed."

"Good," Pietro said, a small smile on his face as he tucked into the rest of his breakfast. He was almost finished and I was only halfway through. Perhaps I should've cooked more for him. His metabolism was much quicker than the average human after all. His whole body processed things quicker.

"Can I take one last look at your wounds?" I asked, looking down at my plate. I knew he didn't like me looking at his body because he felt ashamed of the scars that were there. He shouldn't have been ashamed of them. I purposefully made sure not to look at them when he woke up from his nightmare this morning, not wanting to make him feel like the test subject HYDRA made him.

"Okay," he replied simply, but I could hear the slight timid twinge in his voice that made him sound like he was slowly crawling away.

"I wonder what the plan is for today," I sighed, wiping up the egg yolk with the last pieces of bread I had to partially clean the plate.

"Miss Romanoff and Miss Hill have both agreed that you will be convening in the living room at eight thirty to explain the events of last night as well as give the itinerary for this week," JARVIS explained, almost making me jump. I always forgot that JARVIS was constantly there. It creeped me out a little.

"An 'itinerary'," I repeated, raising my eyebrows as I stood to take my plate. "Haven't had one of those in a while." I hadn't really had one since my time in HYDRA and S.H.I.E.L.D. Since S.H.I.E.L.D fell, I usually was called for missions when I needed them and set my own training plans out. Of course, there were a few scheduled events throughout the week, but no set itinerary, like wake up at this time, train at this time, etcetera.

We had until eight thirty. "What are we supposed to do for the next hour and a half?" I asked Pietro, who simply shrugged.

He turned to me with a small grin on his face that made him seem too troublesome for his own good. "We could explore the building?" he suggested as he began to wash up the plates. I went in search for a tea towel while we spoke, finding one next to the fridge on a rack.

"That sounds like a good plan," I replied. "I feel like we'll get lots of training in later today, so I don't want to tire myself out, you know?" He handed me a wet, clean plate and I began to dry it. There was a small patch of bubbles on it that I quickly wiped off. It made me think of when we had our bubbles fight, something that JARVIS was probably not pleased he had to clean up. A small smile came to my face at the thought.

"My thoughts exactly," he replied, throwing me a smile before continuing to do the washing up.

I didn't know what to think about Pietro. He was funny, smart and brave, a combination that can make someone do the most stupid of things, like throw themselves in front of a sea of bullets.

He was cocky and impatient, quick-tempered like his super-speed, but I could tell that part of him was full of rage, wanting to destroy the Avengers before the battle.

Obviously, that had now changed, but I could almost sense the anger that he had towards HYDRA. Maybe it was because I felt the same way.

 **Please make sure to leave a review. I am trying to update as much as I can, I promise! Thank you! Sorry if there are any mistakes.**


	15. Fitness Is Not Fun

**I** **know, I haven't done a chapter update in forever. It's really bad of me. I'm sorry for people who follow this and I'm sorry to everyone that reviews. I've been really trying to get myself together. My mental health hasn't been great and fanfiction is an escape for me, but it also takes time to think up plots and such so I'm sorry it's taken this long.**

 **This is when is begins to get M RATED, more because of the language.**

 **I've read over the entire story and made sure this chapter is up to date :) I've got so many ideas written down, but I wanted to re-read what I had done already.**

 **Response to reviews:**

Pietro and I snooped around the facility, but only for a little while. We found out where the cafeteria, training room and offices all were. By the time we got back to the apartment, we had to get ready to meet Hill and Romanoff at 8:30.

"Do you think sweatpants is okay to wear to the meeting?" I asked, picking up the Avengers branded ones from a chest of drawers.

"Don't see why not," Pietro replied, walking in trackies and a vest that clutched his chest and stomach just right. Daym, this was going to be difficult to be around every day for the next few weeks.

I turned invisible as I changed into some new underwear and slid the sweatpants on. They were ridiculously soft and comfy. I put a tank top over my head and wrapped an Avengers hoodie around my waist. Walking into the kitchen, I rolled my eyes when I noticed Pietro munching on an energy bar. Did the man stop eating?

"You got everything?" I asked, glancing at the clock on the wall. We had three minutes. "We're gonna be late otherwise."

I rush of blue energy flashed past my eyes. I didn't need to look to know Pietro was waiting at the door.

I glared as I walked towards him, but he just smiled and pointed his finger at me. "You can't tell me off now that I'm healed," he said smugly. I couldn't help but shake my head, even though I was showing a small smile myself.

"Come on, hothead."

By the time we had gotten to the living room, almost everyone was there. The only people missing were Steve and Maria. "Just on time," Natasha said, looking at her watched. Everyone was sitting on the sofas or chairs of the living room bar Natasha who was standing in front of the windows. It was just beginning to get light outside and I could see the sunrise coming through the trees.

"I am here to explain the events of last night, but also what is going to happen today. If anyone has any questions, just say them." The room was silent. "Alright..." she said, clasping her hands together.

"Last night, Steve tried to kill himself," she said as if it didn't affect her at all. I seemed more upset than she was and I had barely known him for two days. "One of Stark's suits saved him and he is currently sleeping in his room with Maria who is observing him. This has been seen as the best way to deal with the situation."

Poor Steve. His current situation was similar to that of a prisoner, but it was for the good of his mental health. "The suicidal emotions he was feeling were buried deep, much like it is with more than a few people in this room. Steve doesn't constantly think about it, but what caused him to have that attempt on the roof last night was Wanda's energy that was left over in his brain after she attacked him."

Everyone's eyes were on Wanda, including my own, which I felt quite bad about. Her eyes were glued to the floor and I could almost feel how guilty she felt. "Everyone here must know that it is not her fault," Natasha stated in a stern tone. "Because of her unstable nature after she was released from HYDRA, energy remained in Steve's brain that prayed on his negative emotions and fears, driving him to the events of last night."

"The people she used her powers on, including me, have been checked for remaining energy, but thankfully it was only Steve that had the problem."

Rhodey raised his hand. "Does this mean Wanda will not be able to invade minds in the future?"

It was a valid question, one I felt needed to be asked, but I felt bad for Wanda being a subject of questioning. "Wanda will be able to use her powers in the future, but she will just need to check that energy isn't left over in people's brains."

We all nodded and I smiled at her. Even though she didn't look up at me, I knew she could feel my presence on her. _'It wasn't your fault'_ I transmitted to her via my mind. She nodded slightly and I was surprised when she spoke back.

 _'I know, I'm just sad about Steve.'_ Poor Wanda.

"What's the plan of action with Steve then?" Sam asked with his arms folded across his chest.

Natasha placed her hands on her hips. "Maria is going to talk through everything that happened to him, but I think with a day's rest, he should be fine. I think we are going to try and convince him to come to the party tonight."

There were a few raised eyebrows and sceptical looks. "Is that the best idea?" Tony asked, worried that Steve might not like that attention so soon. I think we were all thinking along the same lines.

"Hopefully, after today, his mind will reset to his normal thinking. We also need him at the party, otherwise, it'll look suspicious. You wouldn't expect the president to not attend a correspondents dinner."

I heard a few small chuckles around the room. "So, he's okay, yes?" Wanda asked in such a shy voice that it almost pained me.

Natasha smiled at her. "Yes, he is," she put simply. "We also need him tonight because JARVIS has informed me there are a few rumours going around about last night. Someone must've seen him on the rooftop."

"Does the media have any information yet?" Tony asked, bring his phone out and typing immediately, still looking at Natasha. How does he do that?

"Thankfully, I haven't been informed of any reports...yet." Natasha cleared her throat. "But I have already asked JARVIS to keep an eye out for new news articles as well as anyone specifically that is spreading the rumours."

We spoke of Steve a while longer and as time went on, I sank further and further into the comfort of the sofa. It was interesting to listen to and I was glad we were having a discussion about Steve, but I couldn't keep my back straight for the next half an hour.

"Now, about tonight. As you know, Maria said dress as formal as you want as photographers will be there, just don't wear anything too embarrassing please." Natasha gave a side glance to Tony who just winked at her. She rolled her eyes. "We'll probably have dinner at 6 most likely as the party starts at 9 pm."

Natasha looked at everyone with a smirk. "There will be a few large names at the performance tonight like Cardi B, Imagine Dragons, DJ Khaled, Calvin Harris and a few others that I can't remember the names of," she said with the wave of her hand. Imagine Dragons stood out to me against all of the names. Such a good band. It made me very excited about tonight. Everyone was smiling apart from Wanda and Pietro who were looking a little confused about the names she was throwing out. I smirked at their bewilderment.

"Because there are artists performing, Hill thought it would be useful to bring the team's talents to light and have you guys perform" The smiles on most people's faces dropped wondering whether she was serious or not.

Tony was laughing to himself, whereas Rhodey, who was sitting next to him, was looking a little worried. "Are you serious?" Rhodey asked as Tony chuckled to himself.

"Karaoke?" I asked, raising my eyebrow at Natasha.

"We've already done smaller versions of this type of thing before and I think it would be useful to show the other agents that are training with us that we are just like them."

"Well, I already know what I'm going to do," Clint said, putting his hands behind his head and leaning back.

"Same," Sam said with a chuckle.

"Wait," I said, raising my hand slightly. I imagined myself looking like a school child when I did that and immediately put my hand back down. "Do we _have_ to sing?"

Natasha shook her head and smiled. "Only if you want to, but it would be nice to hear from everyone that is here."

The group nodded, happy that they had the choice. I didn't really want to sing. What would I sing anyway? I had no clue where to start. "If you want to get in contact with backup singers and dancers, then come to me as I have contacts that are already prepared for tonight's show."

This was becoming less of a party and more like a 'show' as Natasha put it. It was then that I realised that's all it was. Just a show. We were showing the agents that we could have a good time and the public that we were just like them. We were also highlighting our humanity, but also our money. The idea of attending the 'party' tonight was seeming less and less attractive.

Natasha told us to meet in the training room at 10 am, though performing tonight was the main thing on my mind. "Are you two going to do anything for tonight?" I asked Pietro and Wanda as we walked back to our suite.

Wanda shook her head. "I don't think I'm quite ready for that."

"Also, the songs we used to sing were acoustic rather than..." He paused for a moment. "flashy..." was the word he settled on. I stifled a laugh as we approached our suite. It was still odd to be sharing a room with Pietro and I felt like a third wheel to Wanda and his twin relationship. I didn't want to get in the way of their strong bond, but I didn't really have a choice seeing as Natasha had paired us together.

"Would you like to come in for some tea?" I asked, gesturing to our room. She shooked her head but smiled.

"I think I'm going to spend some time meditating actually. Vision is a good partner. See you in a while, yes?" I nodded and smiled back at her. I didn't fail to notice Pietro not looking too happy.

We entered our room and Pietro sped straight to the sofa to sit down. "Okay, what is it?" I asked, walking over quickly to sit down next to him. The problem with having a speedster as a partner was that he would always be ahead of me.

"I just miss her," he sulked and I rolled my eyes.

"What are you talking about, you've barely been apart," I replied, folding my legs underneath me.

He frowned at me for a moment and I frowned at him too. Did I misunderstand? He was most definitely talking about Wanda. His frown dissipated as he seemed to realise that we weren't talking about the same thing. "I don't mean Wanda." For a minute, I thought he was talking about another woman, perhaps someone that he was serious with. "I mean my mother."

Oh... "What's brought this on?" I asked, turning to face him.

"Wanda and my mother have always had the same face and she just...when Wanda looked at me just now, it reminded me of her." I didn't really know what to say. I had never been in a position to comfort anyone before. My mind was really struggling to think of something. The only thing I thought of to do was shuffle up next to him and wrap my arms around his ribcage to hug him.

Thankfully, he wrapped his arms around me as well otherwise it would've been a little awkward to hug him without him turning to face me. "I'm so sorry you lost her and your father," I whispered, bringing a hand up to stroke through the smallest hairs at the bottom of his neck. "I can't even begin to imagine how it must've been for you."

He was silent for a while, just embracing the hug. I felt him relax a little as I stroked his neck. "It's like I've lived three lives. The one before my parents were killed, the one where I was protesting the government and worked with HYDRA and then the one where I am with the Avengers."

I smiled softly even though he couldn't see me. "Did you know, apparently you are meant to go through five different changes of life in a lifetime?"

He gently shook his head. "No," he whispered. I left it at that, not really sure what else to say or reply with. It was nice, hugging him. We hadn't hugged for this long. Thinking about it, I wasn't sure if we had ever hugged apart from when we slipped over on the kitchen floor during our water fight last night.

He hugged me tightly for a few seconds before slowly letting go completely. When we pulled apart, I looked into his eyes. They were clouded with tears slightly, but he wasn't crying. I would find it odd for Pietro to cry. What he had already said seemed to be letting his walls down quite a bit.

"Thank you," he muttered, looking straight into my eyes. It was quite intense to be stared at for so long, but I knew he didn't mean anything invasive by it. I decided to look away, specifically down, and take my hands in his.

"I'm always here for you, whenever and whatever you need," I whispered, clenching his hands tightly for a second.

"Whatever I need?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes, whatever you need." I smiled and I could've sworn I saw him smirk. For a second I realised that my words could've played off as sexual, but surely his mind wasn't going down that route.

"Well..." he said, looking up at me with puppy dog eyes with his bottom lip pouted out. "I really need a sandwich."

I rolled my eyes and pulled my hands away. "Stuff you and stuff your sandwich," I replied, getting a pillow and hitting him with it. "I was trying to be nice," I added, laughing as I continued hitting him with the pillow. He put his hands up and scowled playfully at me.

"Stop hitting me!" He was laughing too, so I kept doing it, knowing that he didn't mind. At one point, I managed to get a hit straight to his head and shouted "BULLSEYE!"

I dropped the pillow and lay back on the sofa, holding my stomach as he and I laughed together. After a few moments, our laughter died down and we were sitting next to each other, our heads leaned on the cushions as we looked at the ceiling. "Seriously though..." I began, turning my head to look at him. he looked at me too. "I'm here for you when you need."

He smiled and I watched as his eyes traced over the features of my face. It was quick, so quick that I imagined he didn't want me to notice, but I did. "Same here," he replied honestly with a small smile that showed he meant what he was saying.

He blinked slowly and then looked back up at the ceiling. We stayed next to each other like that, in silence, for at least 15 minutes. It was nice to just relax with all the hectic things going on around us. We were in a world of mad people and sitting here with Pietro helped to ease my mind from that madness.

It was a few hours later and before we knew it 10 am had arrived. Pietro was halfway through a snack bar.

"Shit," I muttered looking at the clock. It read 10:02. "Fuck, we're late!"

Pietro grimaced at me and put his food on the dashboard. "Excuse my hands, but I don't want to be chopped into pieces by Natasha if we're later than we already are," he said, walking towards me.

"What are y-"

Within five seconds, we'd gone from our room to the training room. My vision was blurry for that time, a bombardment of blue covering my eyesight. "Fuck," I muttered as he dropped me from the bridal style hold he had me in. I bent over with my hands on my knees.

I felt a little sick from such a quick, jolting movement. He could've given me a bit more warning before rushing me off my feet!

"Language..." I heard a stern voice say.

I looked up to see Steve standing there with his hands on his hips. Next to him was Natasha who didn't look too pleased with us at all.

"Captain, you're...here..." Pietro said, staring at him. I stood up next to Pietro, feeling equally confused.

"Nice observation skills, Maximoff." Natasha's sarcasm really had no limits.

"I thought you were meant to be recovering?" I asked, looking at Maria who was standing with the other Avengers.

Steve smiled at us and shrugged. "I'm feeling a lot better," was all he responded with, but I seriously doubted he was back to 100%. In fact, I could tell he wasn't. He didn't look as strong as usual and he had a tired look in his eyes.

Natasha spoke up. "Do you have a valid excuse for being late?"

"We...uh..." I looked at Pietro for help but he didn't know what to say either. "Team bonding?" I suggested with a hopeful smile. Natasha's face stayed still.

"3 laps." It was worth a shot. "Pietro, you keep going until she's finished."

We both gave small groans but knew that complaining would only land us with more laps of the room to do. It took me a while to do the laps, perhaps 15 minutes. I tried to run as fast as I could, knowing Pietro was waiting for me to be finished.

When I was finally done, I stopped and Pietro immediately ran up beside me. "That wasn't fun," he said with his hands on his knees, crouched over himself. I was the same. Heavy breathing, heart racing and panting.

I nodded in agreement, not wanting to speak. "If you're done, get over here," Natasha called from the centre of the room.

I groaned. "I am so done with being an Avenger," I muttered as we began to run over to Natasha. Pietro laughed at my antics.

When Steve told us what we would be doing for the day, I almost cried. "You will spend the day with each official Avenger, swapping every hour. You will learn their skills, how they operate and everything about their battle technique and style. Not only does this prepare you for when you're attacking someone else, but also when you are being attacked by someone with these skills. Wanda and Vision will be working alone on their mental abilities."

We would be going head to head with Avengers on our second day? Great. "Pietro, you will be working with Clint, Riley with me, Sam with Natasha and Rhodey with Tony, though I feel like you two are not going to have much to talk about."

The team laughed and I didn't really get why. They must've been friends. As soon as I look at them both I immediately realised - they both wear suits, a very specific style of suit. They were definitely friends.

"Great, let's begin."

Working with the Captain was interesting, to say the least. To compare us physically we were extremely different. I was short, he was tall. I was skinny, he was muscle. I was a woman, he was a man, that one being the most obvious one of all.

He smiled at me as I walked over.

"Hello ma'am," he said with the nod of his head and I almost felt myself blush a little, even though he probably treated everyone that way. "I know we haven't gotten to know each other that well so far, but by the end of this week, I'm sure we'll know each other plenty."

I stopped myself from raising my eyebrows at his enthusiasm. "Okay," was all I replied with.

Firstly, we went through his fighting pattern and how he approaches a fight. I was unsurprised to hear that he sees actually fighting someone as a last option, but that was often was missions led to and he needed to be prepared. We started out with some basic sparring in which I never won.

He told me not to use my powers, which I thought was contradictory as he was technically using his. When he did ask me to use my powers, he still beat me. He anticipated most of my movements and those that he didn't, he found a way to get out of my hold.

By the end of our hour, when JARVIS rang a bell through the training room, I was beat. We ended with me in a loose choke hold that he immediately released when the bell sounded. I stood up and he held his hand out for me to shake. I did.

"You fought well," he commented with a smile, but I rolled my eyes.

"Come on, I fought awfully," I said, stretching out my legs.

"We'll change pairs in two minutes!" he shouted to the team, nearly blowing my ears off. He turned back to me and winced, seeing my discomfort. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," I smiled, pulling my ankle up behind me to stretch my thigh.

"Look, it's all about practice. I've been in the game since 1945," he said with a smile, making me laugh and release the leg I was holding up. "It's all about getting to know how to fight someone. I know you've been in S.H.I.E.L.D and have had experience with Romanoff and Barton, but those missions were less dangerous than these. HYDRA most likely gave you tough missions too, but now that technology has advanced, you need to be prepared for tougher things to fight."

I nodded and smiled at him. "Sorry if that came across as patronising," he said, hoping not to offend me.

I shook my head. "It didn't. Thank you, Captain."

He returned my smile and looked at the rest of the group who were chatting in their pairs. "Avengers Regroup..."

Next up was Tony. Oh boy. "I may have created one of, if not the, best manmade machine," he began. I already knew this hour was going to be wasted with him. "but you need to understand how to live without technology." Oh...that had surprised me. He noticed. "Did expect me to say that, huh, kid?"

I ignored the name. "You don't exactly seem like the type to stray away from using technology in your daily life," I said with a raised eyebrow. I suddenly felt a bit worried. Had I just insulted an Avenger?

He laughed and shook his head. "I like you already." Tony Stark was full of surprises. Our sparring wasn't exactly the same as the sparring Rogers and I underwent. He focused on talking most of the time actually, but when we did fight, it was basic punches. He struck me as the type of person to punch first and ask questions later. He also taught me to be a little sneaky and use dirty boxing to get one up on your opponent. Unlike the previous session with Rogers, I actually got him on the ground as many times as he was pinning me down.

Rogers told us to switch as I aimed a punch to his face that he narrowly avoided. "Violet," he said, putting his hand out for me to shake.

I frowned at him but shook his hand anyway. "Uh...the name's Riley," I corrected a little awkwardly. I didn't want to make him feel bad, but he didn't seem fazed by me telling him he was wrong. He just kept smiling.

"Haven't you seen the Incredibles?" he asked with a roll of his eyes. We both walked back to the centre.

We all went for some lunch before training continued though I didn't want it to. My body ached so badly.

The main message I got from Natasha was a bit worrying. "Innocents suffer and the guilty must be punished. My battlefield symbols aren't red, white and blue," she said, nodding her head in the direction of the Captain. She kept my eye line. "They're blood red and personal."

I stared at her for a moment, feeling a little scared, but after a moment, I realised that she had a good point. A battle was personal, most of my missions felt that way. I wanted to do good, especially after HYDRA had me captured, and make sure the world was protected so that in a way was personal.

Clint was my last person to train with. He seemed the most 'normal' out of the group. I've heard that coffee is his heroin and I can roll with that.

"The thing that is different about a bow and arrow is the patience. Learning about it, not getting angry when I couldn't get something, was one of the most valuable skills I acquired. That and learning how not to get my ass handed to me by Nat," he said, his eyes flicking over to Natasha with a grin. She was working with Pietro, but when Clint looked over, she noticed him too. It was odd how they acted around each other like they had one mind.

"Picking up archery transferred into my fighting abilities, such as knowing when to charge into a situation and when to take a breath and figure out the stealthiest route, even if it may be a slower way of achieving your goal."

Clint was more knowledgeable than he let on. On the outside, he was coffee and naps and dorkiness, but he knew what he was doing really and could be sensible when he needed to be.

Fighting with him was fun. He had a teasing technique when it came to fighting that wasn't a constant stream of punches and attacks that made me feel shit about myself, not that the other Avengers meant that as their intention. Clint made me think about what I was doing and how I positioned myself. He critiqued and corrected any stances or moves that I failed to get perfected. By the end of the hour, I knew things that no one else would've been able to tell me.

In fact, all of them collectively had good advice. Cap had taught me respect and strength, Natasha had taught me technique, Tony had taught me new knowledge and sneak attacks and Clint has taught me patience. Together would make the perfect Avenger, alas it would not be possible. That's why they need the team.

"So, does anyone have anyone have any feedback? Anything that'll be useful for the future?" the Captain asked. What was this, group therapy? Regardless, I raised my hand, not wanting to be a bad sport. Rogers nodded to me.

"I like Clint's mindset the best because he focuses on defending the team rather than attacking it. When going on missions, he hides in plain sight, which is something that would obviously appeal to me as a skill to learn. I find his approach intriguing."

Clint grinned at my comment and bowed his head slightly. "Thank you kindly. My work here is done," he said putting his hands out. Natasha rolled her eyes and shook her head, but I could see the small smirk on her face. Everyone laughed at Clint's response.

"Right, now that the one-to-one sessions are over, we will take a half an hour break and then proceed onto three hours of fitness," Rogers explained. I looked at Pietro who had the same tired expression as me - 'Are you fucking kidding me?' was the look I think we shared.

 **I love you, I love you and I love you. Yet again, I am so sorry. I really want to get back into this story because I love it so much. I really appreciate your feedback and I'm sure a new chapter will be up soon :)**

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